Diosdado Cabello
Diosdado Cabello Rondón (born 15 April 1963) is a Venezuelan politician and current member of the National Assembly of Venezuela, where he previously served as Speaker. He is also an active member of the Venezuelan armed forces, with the rank of captain.
Diosdado Cabello | |
|---|---|
Cabello in 2019. | |
| President of the 2017 Constituent Assembly | |
| In office 19 June 2018 – 18 December 2020 | |
| President | Nicolás Maduro |
| Preceded by | Delcy Rodríguez |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Vice President of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela | |
| Assumed office 11 December 2011 | |
| President | Hugo Chávez Nicolás Maduro |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| President of Venezuela | |
| Acting 13 April 2002 – 14 April 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Pedro Carmona (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Hugo Chávez |
| Vice President of Venezuela | |
| In office 13 January 2002 – 28 April 2002 | |
| President | Hugo Chávez |
| Preceded by | Adina Bastidas |
| Succeeded by | José Vicente Rangel |
| 6th President of the National Assembly | |
| In office 5 January 2012 – 5 January 2016 | |
| President |
|
| Preceded by | Fernando Soto Rojas |
| Succeeded by | Henry Ramos Allup |
| Governor of Miranda | |
| In office 31 October 2004 – 29 November 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Enrique Mendoza |
| Succeeded by | Henrique Capriles Radonski |
| Minister of Interior and Justice | |
| In office 28 April 2002 – 10 January 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Ramón Rodríguez Chacín |
| Succeeded by | Lucas Rincón Romero |
| Deputy of the National Assembly of Venezuela | |
| In office 5 January 2011 – 5 December 2021 | |
| Constituency | Venezuela at-large |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Diosdado Cabello Rondón 15 April 1963 El Furrial, Monagas, Venezuela |
| Political party |
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| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) |
| Spouse | Marleny Contreras |
| Children | 4 |
| Relatives | José David Cabello (brother) Glenna Cabello (sister) |
| Profession | Engineer |
Cabello played a key role in Hugo Chávez's return to power following the 2002 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt. He became a leading member of Chavez’s Movimiento V República (MVR), and remains a leading member of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela, into which MVR was merged in 2007. Governor of Miranda state from 2004 to 2008, he lost the 2008 election to prominent opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski and was subsequently appointed Public Works & Housing Minister. In November 2009, he was additionally appointed head of the National Commission of Telecommunications, a position traditionally independent from the Ministry of Public Works and Housing. In 2010, he was elected a member of parliament by his home state of Monagas. In 2011, President Hugo Chávez named him the vice president of Venezuela’s ruling party, the PSUV. In 2012, he was elected and sworn in as President of the National Assembly of Venezuela, the country’s parliament. He was elected president of the National Assembly each year until 2016. He was the second and last president of the 2017 National Constituent Assembly.
Allegations of corruption involving Cabello includes being head of an international drug trafficking organization, accepting bribes from Derwick Associates for public works projects in Venezuela, using nepotism to reward friends and family members and directing colectivos while paying them with funds from Petróleos de Venezuela. In 2013, there were at least 17 formal corruption allegations lodged against Cabello in Venezuela's prosecutors office. On 26 March 2020, the U.S. Department of State offered $10 million for information to bring him to justice in relation to drug trafficking and narco-terrorism.
Often described as the second most, if not the most, powerful man in Venezuela, Reuters notes that Cabello possesses significant "sway with the military and lawmakers plus close links to businessmen."