Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de Leon, former president of Mexico, has been selected to serve on the board of directors of railroad giant Union Pacific Corp.
Former President Zedillo, the 14th member of the Union Pacific board, was a major political figure in Mexico for two decades, until losing his bid for re-election to Vincene Fox last year.
Zedillo, 49, born in Mexico City and raised in the northern city of Mexicali, earned an undergraduate degree in economics from Mexico's National Polytechnic Institute and, in 1981, a doctoral degree in economics from Yale University. Zedillo and his wife, Nilda Patricia Velasco, have five children and live in Mexico City.
Union Pacific Railroad, a subsidiary of UP Corp., is one of the largest rail transportation links with Mexico, with operations at the six border gateways. In 2000, UP said its Mexican revenues increased 19% to $850 million, the highest ever. Mexico revenues in January rose by 6% despite the economic slowdown in the United States, UP said. Additionally, UP owns 26% of Ferrocarril Mexicano (FXE), one of two major railroads within Mexico.
UP also owns Overnite Transportation Corp. of Richmond, Va., a major LTL carrier currently dealing with strike battle launched by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters more than a year ago.