Juan Luis Castro

Juan Luis Castro González (born 18 April 1960) is a Chilean physician, trade union leader and politician affiliated with the Socialist Party (PS). Since March 2022 he has served as a member of the Senate of Chile, representing the 8th Circunscription in the O'Higgins Region for the 2022–2030 legislative period.

Before entering national politics, he combined his medical work in the Intensive Care Unit of the Hospital Barros Luco and the Hospital del Profesor with union activity at the national and Latin American level. In 1999 he was recognised by CNN and Time magazine as one of the “Latin American Leaders of the New Millennium”. They have three children: Juan Pablo, Felipe and Gonzalo. He was re-elected in 2013 and again in 2017 for the new District 15 of the O’Higgins Region.

During his parliamentary career he has served on the standing committees on Health — which he chaired — as well as Mining and Energy, Science and Technology, and Ethics and Transparency. In 2019 he stood for the vice-presidency of the Socialist Party, contesting the position against senator Juan Pablo Letelier.

In August 2021, he registered his candidacy for the Senate within the «New Social Pact» coalition, representing the O’Higgins Region for the 2022–2030 term. In the November 2021 elections, he was elected with 51 428 votes (15.19 %). He took office on 11 March 2022.