José Dalmau Santiago

José Luis Dalmau Santiago was born in Caguas on September 19, 1966. He completed his primary and secondary education at the Colegio Notre Dame in Caguas, graduating in 1984. He subsequently enrolled at the Universidad de Puerto Rico, Recinto de Río Piedras, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology. During his university years, he served as President of the Natural Sciences Student Council in 1989 and Vice President of the Microbiology Student Chapter in 1990. He served as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Facultad de Derecho Eugenio María de Hostos from 1995 to 1997, and was a founder and member of the Student Government Board of the National Association of Law Students. He also participated in the Curriculum, Admissions, and Regulations committees of the faculty and founded the first National Law Student Convention in 1997. He later obtained his Juris Doctor degree from the Facultad de Derecho Eugenio María de Hostos in Mayagüez in 1997. In 2000, he was elected Senator for the Humacao District and was chosen by his colleagues as Senate Majority Leader. During the 2001-2004 term, he chaired the Rules and Calendar Committee, the Housing Committee, and the Legislative Reform Committee. Re-elected in 2004, he served again as Spokesperson for the Popular Democratic Party (PPD) delegation. From 2008 to 2012, he served as an At-Large Senator and PPD Spokesperson, a role he held for three consecutive terms. In the 2013-2016 term, he was re-elected as Senator for the Humacao District and served as Vice President of the Senate and President of the Health and Nutrition Committee. In 2016, he was re-elected to his district and served as Alternate Spokesperson for the PPD. During that legislature, he chaired the Veterans Affairs Committee. In November 2020, he was elected At-Large Senator and became President of the Senate, presiding over the Appointments, Judiciary, and Economic Development committees. He was re-elected as an At-Large Senator in November 2024. Over his legislative career, he has successfully passed more than one hundred laws across seven different gubernatorial administrations in areas including housing, health, education, infrastructure, law, and sports.