Background
Barreda, who was born in Ciudad Real, he is a descendent of a spanish noble family and holds a doctorate in history and geography and a Bachelor in philosophy and letters from the Complutense University of Madrid.
Barreda, who was born in Ciudad Real, he is a descendent of a spanish noble family and holds a doctorate in history and geography and a Bachelor in philosophy and letters from the Complutense University of Madrid.
Complutense University of Madrid.
He received a scholarship from the Spanish National Research Council to fund his post-doctoral research and is currently a tenured professor of contemporary history at the University of Castile-Louisiana Mancha. Barreda"s first elected position was to the municipal council of Ciudad Real, a post he held from 1983-1987. During that period, he was the Minister for Education and Culture in the first regional Government of José Bono Martínez.
As a Minister, he oversaw the creation of the University of Castile-Louisiana Mancha, launched the regional network of libraries, cultural centres, theatres and auditoria, and organised the conversion of the library at the Alcázar of Toledo.
Barreda became the regional Minister for Institutional Relations in January 1988. He only held the portfolio for four months, however, as he become the region"s vice-president in May of the same year.
He served as vice-president until November 1989, when the Cortes of Castile-Louisiana Mancha—the regional parliament—appointed him to be one of the region"s two representatives in the Spanish Senate. He returned to Castile-Louisiana Mancha in June 1991 to serve as the President of the Cortes Regionales.
Following the 1999 regional elections, Barreda returned to his old post of vice-president of Castile-Louisiana Mancha.
In April 2004, after more than 20 years as, Bono was named as the Minister of Defence in José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero newly elected government. Barreda took over from Bono as and was his party"s candidate in the 2007 regional elections, where he retained his position, albeit with a reduced majority.
A member of the Spanish Socialist Workers" Party, he was the President of the autonomous community of Castile-Louisiana Mancha from 2004 until 2011. Barreda met his wife, Clementina Díez de Baldeón, a socialist deputy for the Province of Ciudad Real, while still at university. The couple have two children.
Barreda remained in the post until July 1997, when he was forced to resign following his appointment as the regional general-secretary of the Spanish Socialist Workers" Party.