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Juan José Rendón Delgado (born 27 January 1964), known professionally as J. J. Rendón, is a Venezuelan
political consultant Political consulting is a form of consulting that consists primarily of advising and assisting political campaigns. Although the most important role of political consultants is arguably the development and production of mass media (largely televi ...
,
psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...
, and political
activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...
, known for being the one who has directed and won the most electoral campaigns. He specializes in crisis resolution and is a human rights activist. He is a political asylee in the United States. Rendón has been credited for the successful presidential campaigns of
Juan Manuel Santos Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
(first elected in 2010 and reelected in 2014),
Porfirio Lobo Sosa Porfirio Lobo Sosa (born 22 January 1947) also known by his nickname, Pepe Lobo, is a Honduran former politician, business administrator, and agricultural landowner who served as 37th President of Honduras from 27 January 2010 to 27 January 2014 ...
(2010), and
Enrique Peña Nieto Enrique Peña Nieto (; born 20 July 1966), commonly referred to by his initials EPN, is a Mexican former politician and lawyer who was the 64th president of Mexico from 2012 to 2018. A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), he p ...
(2012). In 2012, he was named one of the most prominent Latin American consultants by the U.S.-based publication
Campaigns & Elections ''Campaigns & Elections'' is a trade magazine covering political campaigns, focused on tools, tactics, and techniques of the political consulting profession. The magazine was founded by Stanley Foster Reed in 1980. It is headquartered in Arlingt ...
. Rendon was inducted into the Hall of Fame of Political Consulting by Reed Latino. In 2016, ABC Internacional, a newspaper of record based in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, named him one of "The 10 Most Important Political Consultants in the World" along with
James Carville Chester James Carville Jr. (born October 25, 1944) is an American political consultant, author and occasional actor who has strategized for candidates for public office in the United States and in at least 23 nations abroad. A Democrat, he is a ...
,
Karl Rove Karl Christian Rove (born December 25, 1950) is an American Republican political consultant, policy advisor, and lobbyist. He was Senior Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff during the George W. Bush administration until his resignation on August ...
, and
Mary Matalin Mary Joe Matalin (born August 19, 1953) is an American political consultant well known for her work with the Republican Party. She served under President Ronald Reagan, was campaign director for George H. W. Bush, an assistant to President Geo ...
. Rendón was appointed in 2019 by contested Venezuelan acting president
Juan Guaidó Juan Gerardo Antonio Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan politician and opposition figure. He belonged to the social-democratic party Popular Will, and was a federal deputy to the National Assembly representing the state of V ...
to lead the Strategy Committee to search new options to overthrow
Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...
, until his resignation on 11 May 2020. Rendón is the founder of the consulting firm ''J.J Rendón y Asociados Creatividad y Estrategia'', Inc., and ''Get Real Films'', the latter of which produced the documentary ''Here comes the Wolf.'' He is also a partner of
V-me V-me (, a pun on ''veme'', 'watch me' or 'see me') is a Hispanic-Latino American Spanish-language television network, formerly carried as an over-the-air public broadcasting network in association with public television stations. V-me airs a var ...
, the first Spanish broadcast television network in association with public television stations.


Early life and education

J. J. Rendón was born in 1964 in Caracas, Venezuela, in the
Military hospital A military hospital is a hospital owned or operated by a military. They are often reserved for the use of military personnel and their dependents, but in some countries are made available to civilians as well. They may or may not be located on a m ...
of San Juan parish. His father, Juan José Rendón González is a retired military officer. His mother, Zoraida Delgado, was one of the first militants of her parish registered in the
Acción Democrática Democratic Action (, AD) is a Venezuelan social democratic and centre-left political party established in 1941. The party played an important role in the early years of Venezuelan democracy, leading the government during Venezuela's first democ ...
party, which promoted and helped end the dictatorship of
Marcos Pérez Jiménez Marcos Evangelista Pérez Jiménez (25 April 1914 – 20 September 2001) was a Venezuelan military officer and the dictator of Venezuela from 1950 to 1958, ruling as member of the military junta from 1950 to 1952 and as president from 1952 t ...
in 1958. She was also executive secretary of the founder of OPEC, the Venezuelan Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonso. He has a sister, Jehanny Rendón Delgado. Before starting his career in an advertising agency in his early 20s, Rendón studied psychology at
Andrés Bello Catholic University Andrés Bello Catholic University () is a private university in Venezuela. One of the largest universities in Venezuela, UCAB has campuses in several cities, such as Caracas (main campus), Los Teques, Guayana Region, Guayana, and Coro region, Cor ...
and
Central University of Venezuela Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
. He obtained a
postgraduate degree Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor ...
in Ontopsychology from the Associazione Internazionale, an Italian institution founded by Antonio Meneghetti. He also obtained degrees in Psychology of Mass Communication, Strategic Planning, and Publicity and Marketing Management.


Career


Entry into politics

At the age of 24, Rendón volunteered for
Carlos Andrés Pérez Carlos Andrés Pérez Rodríguez (27 October 1922 – 25 December 2010) also known as CAP and often referred to as ''Venezuelan Spanish#Some examples of Spanish words common in Venezuela.2C including some native Venezuelanisms .28slang.29, El ...
's second presidential run, where he met and assisted the American political consultant
Joseph Napolitan Joseph Napolitan (March 6, 1929 – December 2, 2013) was an American political consultant, who worked as a general consultant on over 100 political campaigns in the United States, and many others throughout the world. Napolitan served on the 19 ...
. He became the creator of a campaign to stimulate the youth vote through a movement known as "La Venezuela 2000", which was transcendental for the presidential triumph. Rendón founded an advertising company, Chiripa Publicidad, in Caracas, Venezuela. One of his first clients was the former Venezuelan president
Rafael Caldera Rafael Antonio Caldera Rodríguez ( ; 24 January 1916 – 24 December 2009) was a Venezuelan politician and academician who was the 46th and 51st president of Venezuela from 1969 to 1974 and again from 1994 to 1999, thus becoming the longest se ...
(1916–2009), who was re-elected for a second term in 1993. That year, he was hired as creative vice-president of the agency "Chiripa publicidad" which managed the presidential campaign of the then candidate Rafael Caldera, known as the "chiripero" campaign, in allusion to the new party formed by Caldera, Convergencia. The party was nourished by independents and dissidents (chiripas) of the two big traditional political parties, Acción Democrática and Copei. In 1998, he was the strategist of the senatorial campaign of former president Carlos Andrés Pérez who, facing a trial for embezzlement, became the first candidate to win while in prison.


Politics


2000

In the early 2000s, Rendón worked with various political organisations, such as the Mexican
Institutional Revolutionary Party The Institutional Revolutionary Party (, , PRI) is a List of political parties in Mexico, political party in Mexico that was founded in 1929 as the National Revolutionary Party (, PNR), then as the Party of the Mexican Revolution (, PRM) and fin ...
(PRI) and
Social Party of National Unity The Union Party for the People (), or Party of the U (), is a liberal political party in Colombia. The Party is led by former president Juan Manuel Santos. After supporting the presidencies of Álvaro Uribe, Juan Manuel Santos and Iván Duqu ...
. In 2000, his career became international. In August of the same year, one month after the defeat of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which for 71 years had won all the presidential elections, he traveled to Mexico and became the party's strategist, taking charge of most of its campaigns throughout the country. For more than a decade he was in charge of the campaigns of governors, mayors, congressmen, and presidential candidates. In 2001 he ran a campaign that overcame negative indicators in the gubernatorial election held in Tabasco, and in the campaigns of Sinaloa and Veracruz, also with wins.


2004

Rendón was the political advisor for
Hipólito Mejía Rafael Hipólito Mejía Domínguez (born 22 February 1941) is a Dominican politician who served as President of the Dominican Republic from 2000 to 2004. During his presidential term in office the country was affected by one of its worst econ ...
, the candidate of the
Dominican Revolutionary party The Dominican Revolutionary Party (, PRD) is a political party in the Dominican Republic. Traditionally a left-of-centre party and social democratic in nature, the party has shifted since the 2000s toward the political centre. The party's dist ...
, during his successful presidential campaign in 2004.


2005

In 2005, he advised the founding process of the
New Alliance Party The New Alliance Party (NAP) was an American political party formed in New York City in 1979. Its immediate precursor was an umbrella organization known as the Labor Community Alliance for Change, whose member groups included the Coalition of Gr ...
. That same year, 2005, he was in charge of developing the launching campaign of the National Unity Party, the Partido de la U, which emerged as a movement to support the reelection of
Álvaro Uribe Álvaro Uribe Vélez (born 4 July 1952) is a Colombian politician who served as the 31st President of Colombia from 7 August 2002 to 7 August 2010. Uribe started his political career in his home department of Antioquia Department, Antioquia. H ...
in 2006. The campaign challenged the traditional way of doing propaganda and advertising in Colombia. Uribe won reelection with a new party that broke 156 years of
bipartisanship Bipartisanship, sometimes referred to as nonpartisanship, is a political situation, usually in the context of a two-party system (especially those of the United States and some other western countries), in which opposing political parties find c ...
. When
Juan Manuel Santos Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
was appointed Minister of Defense in Colombia during the presidency of Álvaro Uribe Vélez in 2006, J.J. Rendón became the ministry's chief strategist. During this time, there were notable military operations to rescue
FARC The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (, FARC–EP or FARC) was a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in 1966 from peasan ...
hostages, including Operation Jaque on July 2, 2008, which resulted in the rescue of presidential candidate
Ingrid Betancourt Ingrid may refer to: * Ingrid (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Ingrid Burley (born 1986), rapper known mononymously as Ingrid * Ingrid (record label), also an artist collective * Tropical Storm Ingrid, various cy ...
, two U.S. contractors, and several police and army officers held by the guerrillas for more than six years.


2008

JJ Rendón was accused on various social media platforms of being behind the ''"historical fantasy"'' of the rescue by the Colombian government (former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez) of Emmanuel (a child that was captured and held hostage) and that the child was living in Bogotá, which ended up being true. Soon after, it was proven via
DNA testing Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...
that the child was Emmanuel. Venezuelan
Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...
Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...
questioned the results of the DNA testing, stating that Colombia did not allow Venezuelan specialists to conduct their own tests and had created a ''"cloak of doubt"''. However, in January 2008, FARC rebels released a communiqué in which they admitted that Emmanuel ''"is the same three-year-old who was living in foster care in Bogotá, Colombia, who was due to be part of hostage deal."'' The child was the son of
Clara Rojas Clara Leticia Rojas González (born December 20, 1964) is a Colombian lawyer, university lecturer, and campaign manager for former senator and presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt. She was kidnapped along with Betancourt by the FARC guerri ...
, Ingrid Betancourt's presidential running mate, both kidnapped by FARC rebels. The child was born in captivity during the kidnapping. In this case, then-Venezuelan President
Hugo Chávez Frías Hugo or HUGO may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese * Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback * Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on a ...
and Senator Piedad Córdova were intermediaries with the FARC. They insisted that they would free the child Emmanuel and the rest of the hostages. But the rescue was finally made with the help of the military forces.


2009

In 2009, the governor of the state of
Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
,
Fidel Herrera Fidel most commonly refers to: * Fidel Castro (1926–2016), Cuban communist revolutionary and politician * Fidel Ramos (1928–2022), Filipino politician and former president Fidel may also refer to: Other persons * Fidel (given name) Film * ...
, made Rendón handle the crisis in the state after the media claimed that the origin of the world epidemic of influenza AH1N1 was in La Gloria, a cattle-raising town on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. That same year, with his audiovisual production company Get Real Films, Rendón produced and directed the documentary Here Comes The Wolf, in which he denounces the responsibility of the World Health Organization (WHO), governments, and the media in the handling of public information related to the events that led to the worldwide alarm. The documentary was narrated by the famous actor
Andy García Andrés Arturo García Menéndez (born April 12, 1956) is an American actor, director, producer, and musician. He first rose to prominence acting in Brian De Palma's '' The Untouchables'' (1987) alongside Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, and ...
and participated in several international festivals.


2010


Juan Manuel Santos presidential campaign

Rendón, the lead strategist of the presidential campaign of
Juan Manuel Santos Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
in Colombia, helped turn a close presidential race in Colombia into a landslide victory for Juan Manuel Santos against the
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
candidate
Antanas Mockus Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (; born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the National University of Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from the Un ...
. Santos was elected in a campaign that in just 35 days reversed the negative trend he had been running.


Porfirio Lobo Sosa presidential campaign

Honduran politician and agricultural landowner
Porfirio Lobo Sosa Porfirio Lobo Sosa (born 22 January 1947) also known by his nickname, Pepe Lobo, is a Honduran former politician, business administrator, and agricultural landowner who served as 37th President of Honduras from 27 January 2010 to 27 January 2014 ...
, known as Pepe Lobo, was elected president of Honduras in 2010, with Rendón as his political advisor. Rendón was also consultant to Honduran politician
Juan Orlando Hernández Juan Orlando Hernández Alvarado (; born 28 October 1968), also known by his initials JOH, is a Honduran lawyer, former politician and convicted drug trafficker who was 38th president of Honduras from 27 January 2014 to 27 January 2022 for two ...
during his successful presidential campaign in 2012.


2012 Enrique Peña Nieto presidential campaign

In 2012,
Enrique Peña Nieto Enrique Peña Nieto (; born 20 July 1966), commonly referred to by his initials EPN, is a Mexican former politician and lawyer who was the 64th president of Mexico from 2012 to 2018. A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), he p ...
was elected 57th President of Mexico. Rendón was his political advisor.


2013


Juan Manuel Santos re-election campaign

Rendón joined Juan Manuel Santos for his re-election campaign in Colombia. In May 2014, Javier Antonio Calle Sernaby, leader of the Colombian drug cartel
Los Rastrojos Los Rastrojos is a Colombian drug cartel and paramilitary group engaged in the Colombian armed conflict. The ...
, alleged that he paid Rendón $12 million to help him negotiate favourable terms of surrender and avoid extradition to the US. Rendón denied receiving the money, but stepped down as campaign chief in the election's final stretch. Santos beat his opponent by six percent in a run-off election in June 2014, securing his second four-year term as Colombia's president. The Prosecutor's Office ruled that the allegations against Rendón were not in accordance with the evidence presented and that no such money had existed, and the case closed.


Henrique Capriles Radonski presidential campaign

Rendón was the main strategist for the Venezuelan presidential candidate
Henrique Capriles Henrique Capriles Radonski (; born 11 July 1972) is a Venezuelan politician and lawyer, who served as the 36th Governor of Miranda (state), Miranda from 2008 to 2017. Born in Caracas, he received a degree in law from the Universidad Católica ...
. Official results gave
Nicolas Maduro Nicolas or Nicolás may refer to: People Given name * Nicolas (given name) Mononym * Nicolas (footballer, born 1999), Brazilian footballer * Nicolas (footballer, born 2000), Brazilian footballer Surname Nicolas * Dafydd Nicolas (c.1705–1774), ...
—who had assumed the role of
acting president An acting president is a person who temporarily fills the role of a country's president when the incumbent president is unavailable (such as by illness or visiting abroad) or when the post is vacant (such as for death Death is the en ...
since Chávez's death—a narrow victory over Capriles. Capriles claimed that electoral fraud had taken place on April 14, 2013, in the special election where Maduro was elected president. Capriles provided evidence of the alleged fraud and refused "to accept the vote-tally unless the electoral authority agrees to open all the ballot boxes and count the paper ballots". The authorities refused this methodology claiming it was not foreseen in the law.


Relationship with the media

Rendon became well known in 2013 through media outlets such as
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
and interviews with journalists including Jorge Ramos,
Maria Elvira Salazar Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
,
Fernando del Rincón Fernando López del Rincón (Morelos, Mexico, 18 August 1969) is a Mexican television presenter who is well known throughout Latin America and by the Latino community in the U.S. He has worked at both Telemundo and Univision, and since 2010 h ...
, and
Jaime Bayly Jaime Bayly Letts (born February 19, 1965) is a Peruvian writer, journalist, and television personality. He has won an Emmy Award and two of his books have been adapted into international movies. He also won the Premio Herralde in 1997 for hi ...
. He made an appearance on CNN to talk about the
special elections A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...
being held in Venezuela to replace
Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; ; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician, Bolivarian Revolution, revolutionary, and Officer (armed forces), military officer who served as the 52nd president of Venezuela from 1999 until De ...
after his death in March 2013. In an interview with Jaime Bayly in January 2016, Rendón claimed that he had been a victim of political persecution and the victim of more than 140 attacks by the Venezuelan government.


Political activist

Rendón gained international attention for his activism against what he regards as neo-totalitarian regimes. He is a self-declared enemy of
socialism of the 21st century Socialism of the 21st century (; ; ) is an interpretation of socialist principles first advocated by German sociologist and political analyst Heinz Dieterich and taken up by a number of Latin American leaders. Dieterich argued in 1996 that ...
and supports presidential and governor candidates running in opposition to its policies. His position with regards to these governments, especially the Venezuelan government, has drawn strong reactions from socialism of the 21st century, Hugo Chávez, and supporters of communism and socialism in general. On many occasions, Rendón has faced strong opposition from Venezuelan senior officials, including president
Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...
, who declared in July 2012 that Rendón was "the number one public enemy of the Venezuelan state". The lead strategist of the Venezuelan government, Jorge Rodríguez, has repeatedly insinuated that J.J. Rendón is the main strategist of the Venezuelan opposition, calling him a "psychopath" on government-funded media outlets, including the public channel VTV (''Venezuelan Television Corporation'') and
TeleSUR Telesur (stylized as teleSUR) is a Latin American terrestrial and satellite news television network headquartered in Caracas, Venezuela, and sponsored by the governments of Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua. First proposed in 2005 and subsidized ...
, a
Caracas Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...
-based television network funded by the governments of Venezuela,
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
, and
Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...
. Since 2004, Rendón has claimed that the Venezuelan government has committed fraud in the
presidential elections A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The ...
. On December 6, 2015, having won 19 elections in 15 years, the Venezuelan government recognised that the Venezuelan opposition had won 112 seats in the National Assembly. However, president
Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...
and lead strategist of the Venezuelan government Jorge Rodríguez, claimed on national television that the
Democratic Unity coalition The Unitary Democratic Coalition (, CDU) is an electoral and political coalition between the Portuguese Communist Party () and the Ecologist Party "The Greens" ( Portuguese: Partido Ecologista "Os Verdes" or PEV). The coalition also integrates t ...
(Venezuelan opposition party,
MUD Mud (, or Middle Dutch) is loam, silt or clay mixed with water. Mud is usually formed after rainfall or near water sources. Ancient mud deposits hardened over geological time to form sedimentary rock such as shale or mudstone (generally cal ...
) had won it because of the "economic and psychological war" allegedly led by Rendón and other opponents. On his daily show, Jaime Bayly congratulated Venezuelan opposition figures
Henrique Capriles Radonski Henrique Capriles Radonski (; born 11 July 1972) is a Venezuelan politician and lawyer, who served as the 36th Governor of Miranda from 2008 to 2017. Born in Caracas, he received a degree in law from the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, ...
and Rendón for the victory. In 2013, then-Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro declared that Rendón was a "stateless" person after accusing him of being linked to an audio recording "widely circulated on social media purporting to be the late Venezuelan leader saying that he's still alive". The Venezuelan government denied him the fundamental human right to a
nationality Nationality is the legal status of belonging to a particular nation, defined as a group of people organized in one country, under one legal jurisdiction, or as a group of people who are united on the basis of culture. In international law, n ...
, Despite being born in Venezuela, Rendón cannot obtain a Venezuelan passport as of 2016. He has claimed to be subjected to several other human rights violations and political persecution. In May 2016, Rendón received political asylum from the United States government.


The Power of One

Rendón started The Power of One seminar series in 2013. It features practical strategies for
political activists Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...
who wish to oppose neo-totalitarian regimes known as "The New Face of Dictatorship" as he named it during a TEDxMidAtlantic talk in 2014. Rendón has presented the lecture free of charge in more than 30 Latin American cities, for the TED lecture series in Washington D.C and at the United Nations headquarters in New York. Rendón calls himself an "enemy of neo-totalitarian governments" and gives examples of such governments Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, countries where democratic credentials have been questioned by many, including the U.S. government and President Barack Obama. He promised to wear black until freedom returns to Venezuela. On 16 September 2016, Rendón was invited to present "The Power of One" at
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
of Boston. Because of the seminar, Rendón received a
Doctor Honoris Causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
from
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
.


Allegations

Rendón was faced with strong opposition from various Chávez-funded media outlets, centered on his work ethic and strategy tactics. Allegations were brought forward in November 2013 by Venezuelan prosecutor Luisa Ortega Díaz who requested
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
detain Rendón and extradite him to Venezuela under charges of assault. Rendón denied these claims and asserted that Venezuela could not legally ask for his arrest without a warrant being present. Despite the allegations, no such warrant was placed on
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
's wanted persons list, and the claims were dismissed. In 2014, President
Mauricio Funes Carlos Mauricio Funes Cartagena (18 October 1959 – 21 January 2025) was a Salvadoran politician and journalist who served as the 79th president of El Salvador from 2009 to 2014. Funes won the 2009 presidential election as the candidate of t ...
of
El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...
accused Rendón of conducting dirty war campaigns throughout Latin America. Rendón sued Funes for defamation in Florida, but the court ruled that Funes could not be sued for his official acts. In March 2016, Andrés Sepúlveda, who was serving 10 years in prison for charges such as use of malicious software, conspiracy to commit crime, violation of personal data, and espionage, claimed that most of his work in the past eight years had been on the payroll of Rendón. Sepúlveda provided ''Bloomberg Businessweek'' with what he said were e-mails showing conversations between him, Rendón, and Rendón's consulting firm concerning hacking and the progress of campaign-related cyber attacks. Rendón denied using Sepúlveda for anything illegal, and disputed Sepúlveda's account of their relationship. Rendón filed a lawsuit against Bloomberg Businessweek and the journalists who signed the report, both in the United States and in Colombia, because of the story they ran. The lawsuit is still in process.


Macuto Bay raid

In August 2019,
Juan Guaidó Juan Gerardo Antonio Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan politician and opposition figure. He belonged to the social-democratic party Popular Will, and was a federal deputy to the National Assembly representing the state of V ...
tasked Rendón with a "Strategic Committee" to investigate scenarios for achieving the removal of Maduro from office. Members of the Strategic Committee argued that the Venezuelan Constitution, the
United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime The United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC, also called the Palermo Convention) is a 2000 United Nations-sponsored multilateral treaty against transnational organized crime. History The convention was adopted by a ...
, and other treaties justified action against Maduro. On May 4, 2020, Rendón and Congressman Sergio Vergara, another member of the presidential committee to address the Venezuelan crisis, were accused by the regime of Nicolás Maduro of being linked to a maritime incursion known as "El macutazo" in which Venezuelan military and civilian dissidents, together with a contractor and former U.S. military member of the Silvercorp company, attempted to overthrow the Venezuelan dictatorship. Rendón denied the accusations, resigned from the strategy committee, and gave a series of interviews to media and portals around the world to inform that although there was a service agreement with Silvercorp, it had been canceled months before the incursion, something that the contractor himself confirmed in a public interview. On 8 May 2020, Venezuelan Attorney General
Tarek William Saab Tarek William Saab Halabi (, ; born 10 September 1962) is a Venezuelan politician, lawyer, and poet. He was a leader of the Fifth Republic Movement (MVR) party founded by Hugo Chávez, President of Venezuela, who publicly called him "The poet o ...
requested the
extradition In an extradition, one Jurisdiction (area), jurisdiction delivers a person Suspect, accused or Conviction, convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, into the custody of the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforc ...
of Rendón from the United States, along with Silvercorp USA founder
Jordan Goudreau Jordan Guy MacDonald Goudreau (born 30 July 1976) is a Canadian-American mercenary who claimed responsibility for organizing the Macuto Bay incursion into Venezuelan territory on 3 May 2020. Goudreau is the owner and operator of a private s ...
and exiled Venezuelan lawmaker Sergio Vergara, for the "design, financing, and execution" of the plan to overthrow Maduro.


Achievements

In 2014, Rendón was nominated as Political Consultant of the Year by Victory Awards.


References


External links


Power of one: JJ Rendon at TEDxUNPlaza 2013
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rendon, J. J. 1964 births Living people Political consultants People from Caracas Andrés Bello Catholic University alumni Central University of Venezuela alumni People of the Crisis in Venezuela Fugitives wanted by Venezuela Venezuelan exiles