Xiomara Castro

Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento (Spanish pronunciation: [sjoˈmaɾa ˈkastɾo]; born 30 September 1959), also known by her married name as Xiomara Castro de Zelaya, is a Honduran politician and businesswoman, who served as the president of Honduras from 2022 to 2026. She was the country's first female president, and served as first lady during the presidency of her husband Manuel Zelaya.

Castro grew up in Tegucigalpa. She married in 1976 and became active in the women's section of the Liberal Party of Honduras. She became the country's first lady in 2006 following her husband's victory in the 2005 Honduran presidential election. Castro became involved in the National Popular Resistance Front after her husband's refusal to comply with a Supreme Court order led to the 2009 Honduran coup d'état, forcing him into exile.

She was nominated as the presidential candidate of the left-wing Liberty and Refoundation (LIBRE) party at the 2013 Honduran general election, finishing runner-up to National Party of Honduras candidate Juan Orlando Hernández and outpolling Liberal candidate Mauricio Villeda. At the 2017 Honduran general election, she was Salvador Nasralla's running mate, with the ticket narrowly losing to Hernández amidst allegations of irregularities. Castro was ultimately elected to the presidency in the 2021 Honduran general election, defeating National candidate Nasry Asfura with Nasralla as her running mate. She was the first president from outside the country's two-party system since democracy was restored in 1982. In 2023, she was ranked 94 on Forbes's list of the world's 100 most powerful women.