Trump plans to pardon former Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vazquez following her plea agreement.
In a move that is garnering considerable attention, President Donald Trump is poised to grant a pardon to Wanda Vazquez Garced, the former governor of Puerto Rico. This decision, reportedly linked to Trump’s ongoing campaign against what he perceives as “lawfare,” reflects a broader pattern of pardoning political allies that has characterized his administration. As the political landscape evolves, this pardon has ignited a fresh discourse on accountability within governance and the administration’s interpretation of justice.
The White House has confirmed that President Donald Trump plans to issue a pardon for Wanda Vazquez Garced, the former governor of Puerto Rico. Reports, first disclosed by CBS News, indicate that the pardon is closely associated with the Trump administration’s ongoing campaign against what the president denotes as “lawfare.”
A Trump official, speaking on condition of anonymity, referred to Vazquez’s case as emblematic of political persecution. This perspective aligns with Trump’s overall strategy, which has included a number of pardons aimed at right-wing officials and allies since his return to office. Notable examples include pardons for former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, convicted of federal drug charges, and participants in the January 6, 2021, Capitol rioting who challenged his 2020 election defeat.
With over 1,700 acts of clemency granted in just the past year, Trump appears set to surpass his predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, who announced 4,245 acts of clemency during his four-year term—the highest of any president in modern history. However, news of Vazquez’s pardon has ignited dissent among political opponents in Puerto Rico, including Pablo Jose Hernandez Rivera, who represents the island in the U.S. House of Representatives. He criticized the decision on social media, stating that it undermines public integrity and weakens trust in the justice system.
Puerto Rico holds a unique status as a U.S. territory, lacking voting representation in Congress, and the relationship between Trump and the island has historically been tumultuous. In August, Trump controversially dismissed five Democratic members of Puerto Rico’s federal control board, which oversees the island’s financial governance, and made disparaging remarks during a 2024 campaign rally.
Pardons have become a common tool for Trump, who critiques the U.S. justice system as being biased against conservatives and often denounces what he refers to as the “weaponization” of the Justice Department by previous Democratic administrations. Throughout his tenure, Trump himself has faced multiple indictments, with only one resulting in a state-level conviction.
Wanda Vazquez, a member of the New Progressive Party who identifies politically as a Republican, rose to the governorship when her predecessor, Ricardo Rosello, resigned in 2019, a position she held until January 2021. In 2022, the U.S. Justice Department arrested her for alleged corruption during her time in office, accusing her of offering to dismiss a commissioner in return for campaign contributions.
The bribery allegations stem from her time in office between December 2019 and June 2020, during which Puerto Rico’s Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions was investigating a bank linked to Venezuelan financier Julio Martin Herrera Velutini. Prosecutors have alleged that Vazquez conspired to secure the commissioner’s resignation in exchange for pledged support for her gubernatorial campaign; however, she ultimately lost the primary election. Despite initially denying wrongdoing, she later agreed to a plea deal, marking her as the first former governor of Puerto Rico to face federal charges.
As discussions unfold regarding the implications of Trump’s pardon for Vazquez, the political landscape in Puerto Rico and its residents’ trust in governance may be tested further.
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