Trump Pardons Convicted Former Honduran President Days Before Honduran Election

Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández was released from federal custody on Monday, December 1, 2025, following the issuance of a full and unconditional presidential pardon by Donald Trump. This executive action came after Hernández was convicted in March 2024 and subsequently sentenced in June 2024 to a 45-year term for conspiring to import more than 400 tons of cocaine into the United States, alongside weapons offenses. Trump had publicly signaled his intent to grant clemency on November 28, 2025, citing assertions from respected figures that the former president had faced disproportionately severe and unjust treatment.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt publicly endorsed the clemency, characterizing the conviction as an instance of "clear... over prosecution" allegedly orchestrated by the previous administration and suggesting Hernández had been intentionally "set up." The timing of the pardon proved immediately significant, occurring just days before the Honduran general election, in which President Trump had actively supported the conservative candidate, Nasry Asfura. Preliminary counts from the National Electoral Council (CNE) in Honduras following the November 30 vote indicated a "technical tie," with Asfura leading rival Salvador Nasralla by only 515 votes when counting was suspended at 57% of precincts reported.

The pardon represents an unusual exercise of executive authority, granting freedom to a foreign head of state convicted of major narcotics offenses shortly after his incarceration. Hernández, who governed Honduras from 2014 until 2022, was found to have used his political office to shield drug traffickers who provided him with financial support during his trial before U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel. Judge Castel had previously described Hernández during the June 2024 sentencing as a "two-faced politician hungry for power."

This act of clemency occurred concurrently with an ongoing, aggressive U.S. military anti-drug campaign initiated in September 2025, which has involved lethal strikes against small vessels near Venezuela, reportedly resulting in the destruction of at least 21 vessels and the deaths of over 80 individuals by late November. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth affirmed support for these military actions during a December 2, 2025, Cabinet meeting, justifying them as necessary to disrupt "narco-terrorist" networks. Leavitt maintained that the pardon did not undermine the seriousness of the concurrent anti-narcotics operation.

Reactions to the release were immediate and divided. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized the decision, stating it made a "mockery" of the commitment to counter drug trafficking. Conversely, Hernández's wife, Ana García Carías, confirmed his release on December 2, 2025, and expressed gratitude to President Trump. Hernández's attorney, Renato Stabile, cited security risks from "narco-terrorists" as the reason for an immediate delay in the former president's return to Honduras. Hernández had previously appealed to Trump in October 2025, alleging political targeting by the administration that succeeded Trump's term. The current Honduran President, Xiomara Castro, whose leftist party faced conservative opposition in the recent election, oversaw Hernández's extradition in April 2022.