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White House Says Trump Intends to Pardon Ex-Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vázquez

The planned clemency would upend a near-term sentencing after her August guilty plea to a federal campaign-finance misdemeanor.

Overview

  • An unnamed White House official said Trump plans to pardon Vázquez, with reports indicating two co-defendants are also included.
  • Vázquez pleaded guilty in August 2025 to a misdemeanor violation of federal campaign-finance law tied to her 2020 gubernatorial campaign.
  • Federal prosecutors sought a one-year prison term, while her attorneys accused them of breaching the plea agreement as sentencing neared this month.
  • Prosecutors had alleged she conspired from late 2019 to mid-2020 with banker Julio Martín Herrera Velutini and ex-FBI agent Mark Rossini to replace Puerto Rico’s financial regulator as the banker’s institution faced scrutiny.
  • The White House cast the case as politically motivated, citing that the probe began 10 days after her 2020 endorsement of Trump, a rationale criticized by Puerto Rico opposition figure Pablo José Hernández.