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Juan Gerardo Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan engineer and politician currently serving as the President of the National Assembly of Venezuela, in office since January 2019. A member of the Popular Will party, he serves as a federal deputy representing the state of Vargas.

He was declared the interim President of Venezuela on 11 January 2019 by the National Assembly upon Nicolás Maduro being sworn in for a second term as president, although Maduro is still believed to be in power.

Early life and education

After living through the Vargas tragedy of 1999 which left his family temporarily homeless, Guaidó earned his high school diploma in 2000. The tragedy, according to his colleagues, influenced his political views after the then-new government of Hugo Chávez provided ineffective response to the disaster.

Guaidó later earned his professional license as an industrial engineer after graduating from the Andrés Bello Catholic University in 2007. Guaidó also did postgraduate studies at George Washington University in the United States and at the Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administración.

Activism

He was part of a student-led political movement that protested against the Venezuelan government's decision not to renew the broadcasting license of independent television network RCTV. The group also protested broader attempted reforms of the government by Hugo Chavez's regime, including the constitutional referendum of 2007.

Guaidó, along with political figures like Leopoldo López, became founding members of the Popular Will political party in 2009.

Venezuelan National Assembly

In the 2010 parliamentary elections, Guaidó was elected to a seat as an alternate federal deputy, and was elected to a full seat in the National Assembly in the 2015 elections by earning 97,492 votes (26.01%) of the vote. Despite being severely impoverished, a majority of employers in Vargas are government companies, and, thus, until Guaidó's 2015 election, Chavista rule in the state was unchallenged.

In 2017, Guaidó was named head of Comptroller's Commission of the National Assembly and in 2018, he was named head of the legislature's opposition.

During his time in the National Assembly, Guaidó investigated corruption cases surrounding the Maduro administration, as well as operating alongside independent organizations to return money stolen from the Venezuelan public. He also participated in the 2017 Venezuelan protests and was left scarred on his neck after he was shot by authorities armed with rubber bullets.

President of the National Assembly

Guaidó was elected President of the National Assembly of Venezuela in December 2018, and was sworn in on 5 January 2019. Relatives of political prisoners were invited to the inauguration, gathering on the balcony behind the banner of Juan Requesens. Upon taking office, he vowed to oppose Nicolás Maduro, who has been accused of wanting to usurp executive power by remaining in office past the expiration of his presidential term, set to expire on 10 January 2019, officiating an eight-point action plan. Several Latin American leaders have called for Maduro to turn executive power over to the National Assembly at the end of his term in office, and for new elections to be held in an attempt to restore democracy.

Assumption of presidential powers and duties

After what he and others described as the "illegitimate" inauguration of Maduro on 10 January 2019, Guaidó announced he would challenge Maduro's claim and held a rally the following day, where the National Assembly announced he had assumed the powers and duties of president and they would continue to plan to remove Maduro, contributing to the Presidential crisis.

Recognition

Guaidó's ascension was supported most prominently by the Organization of American States. Individual governments including Brazil and Colombia have also recognized Guaidó as the acting president of Venezuela.

Arrest and Release

On 13 January 2019, while on his way to La Guaira, to attend the Open Cabildo called for that day, he was intercepted by members of the SEBIN, subsequently arrested, according to his wife, Fabiana Rosales; minutes later he was released.

The Lima Group condemned the act, as did the secretary of the OAS, Luis Almagro. On the same day, he declared himself as acting president. The government attributed the fact that it was carried out unilaterally by the SEBIN personnel involved, and an arrest warrant was issued to the Intelligence Service Commissioner, Idelmaro Múcura, designated as responsable. In this regard, Guaidó declared that after the events it was demonstrated that there was a break in the chain of command in the Armed Forces.

References

1. "Venezuela's congress names new leader, vows to battle Maduro". Kansas.com. 5 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
2. ^ "Diputado por Vargas Juan Guaidó" (in Spanish). Popular Will Party. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
3. Smith, Scott (5 January 2019). "Venezuela's congress names new leader, vows to battle Maduro". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
4. "Opposition-controlled Venezuela legislature calls for protest to oust Maduro". France 24. 12 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
5. ^ "Guaidó, político de poca experiencia que asume rol crucial". La Patilla (in European Spanish). 14 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
6. ^ Zubillaga, Guillermo (9 January 2019). "Meet the New Face of Venezuela's Opposition". Americas Quarterly. Retrieved 15 January 2019. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
7. "Juan Guaidó, el presidente más joven de la Asamblea que deberá tomar la decisión más difícil" (in Spanish). NTN 24. 3 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
8. "Quién es Juan Guaidó, el nuevo presidente del Parlamento venezolano que desafía a Nicolás Maduro" (in Spanish). Clarin. 5 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
9. "Voluntad Popular will propose Juan Guaidó as president of the National Assembly and ratifies his ignorance of Nicolás Maduro". Voluntad Popular. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
10. Rodriguez Rosas, Ronny (20 December 2018). "Voluntad Popular confirma que propondrá a Juan Guaidó para presidir la AN en 2019" (in Spanish). Efecto Cocuyo. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
11. "Diputado Juan Guaidó ingresó al Palacio Federal Legislativo en compañía de su familia #5Ene" (in Spanish). El Impulso. 5 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
12. "ELECCIONES A LA ASAMBLEA NACIONAL 2015language=es". National Electoral Council of Venezuela. 22 January 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
13. Daniels, Joe Parkin (15 January 2019). "Who is Juan Guaidó, the opposition leader challenging Maduro's rule?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
14. ^ "Venezuela's opposition vows to help end Maduro's rule". Financial Times. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
15. France-Presse, Agence (5 January 2019). "Venezuela's parliament rejects legitimacy of Maduro second term". ABS CBN News. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
16. Smith, Scott (5 January 2019). "Venezuela's congress names new leader, vows to battle Maduro". ABC News. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
17. Buitrago, Deisy (5 January 2019). "New Venezuela congress chief says Maduro will be usurper president". Reuters. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
18. ^ Phillips, Tom (11 January 2019). "Venezuela: opposition leader declares himself ready to assume presidency". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
19. ^ "Juan Guaidó: Me apego a los artículos 333, 350 y 233 para lograr el cese de la usurpación y convocar elecciones libres con la unión del pueblo, FAN y comunidad internacional". Asamblea Nacional de Venezuela. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
20. ^ "Parallel govt emerging in Venezuela". Argus Media. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
21. "Juan Guaidó se declara presidente da venezuela e tem apoio do brasil". VEJA. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
22. "Alejandro Baena, candidato liberal a la alcaldía de Cali". Retrieved 15 January 2019.
23. "Venezuela opposition leader briefly detained". 13 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019 – via bbc.com.
24. "Detienen brevemente a Juan Guaidó, presidente de la Asamblea Nacional de Venezuela". Noticieros Televisa (in Mexican Spanish). 13 January 2019.
25. "Los servicios de inteligencia de Nicolás Maduro detuvieron al presidente del Parlamento, Juan Guaidó, y lo liberaron minutos después". Infobae. 13 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
26. Redacción, Sala de. "Juan Guaidó desde Vargas: "Hay un presidente legítimo de la AN y de toda Venezuela"". albertonews.com (in European Spanish).

• Current events
• 1983 births
• George Washington University alumni
• People from Vargas (state)
• People from La Guaira
• Popular Will politicians
• People of the Crisis in Venezuela (2012–present)
• Venezuelan democracy activists
• Living people
• Speakers of the National Assembly (Venezuela)