Montero was sexually abused as a child. She married at 16 to a man who beat her. And she worked as a prostitute for years to feed her children. The year-old wants to focus on improving opportunities for women, a significant challenge in a country where about 35 percent of households are led by single mothers in poverty.
She plans to introduce legislation that would prohibit discrimination against specific groups considered vulnerable, including LGBT, sex workers, people with AIDS and the elderly.
The walls of her office are adorned with diplomas and posters from international conferences dealing with sex work.
Activists say the significance of her election transcends her relatively minor legislative position because she will be a powerful voice for largely unrepresented people.
Others see her elevation as a sign of social progress. By some estimates, there are , Dominicans selling sex in the country of 10 million or abroad. It is illegal to operate a brothel or sell the services of someone else, but enforcement is sporadic. Montero, repeating her oft-told life story, grew up poor in a foster family where she was sexually abused by a male relative. She says she began working as a prostitute in Santo Domingo while still a teen after her abusive husband left her alone with a young child she could not support.
