Gustavo Melella


Gustavo Adrián Melella is an Argentine politician who is the current Governor of Tierra del Fuego Province, having taken office in December 2019. He previously served as Mayor of Río Grande from 2011 to 2019. He is the first openly gay governor of an Argentine province.

Early life

Melella was born in San Justo, Buenos Aires in 1970 and attended a Salesian school in Almagro. When he was 26 years old he moved to Río Grande in Tierra del Fuego Province, becoming a Philosophy lecturer at a Salesian School. In 2002 he was made Rector.

Political career

From 2004 to 2005, Melella worked as the Director of Local Development in the Río Grande municipal government, and from 2005 to 2011 he served as Secretary of Production. In 2011 he was elected mayor of the city of Río Grande and was re-elected in 2015.
Melella was elected Governor of Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and Southern Atlantic Islands on June 16, 2019, defeating incumbent Governor Rosana Bertone in the first round. He took up office in December 2019.

Personal life

Melella is openly gay. In a radio interview on June 18, 2019, Melella revealed he has been in a same-sex relationship for 16 years.