President Donald Trump has announced a pardon for former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, a convicted narco-trafficker serving a 45-year sentence in the United States.

On November 28, former President Donald Trump announced he would pardon Juan Orlando Hernández, who was convicted in a New York court in 2024 for his involvement in trafficking approximately 400 tons of cocaine into the United States in collaboration with the Sinaloa cartel. Trump argued that the former Honduran leader had been “treated very harshly and unfairly.” During his presidency, Hernández directed over half a million dollars in contracts to the Republican lobbying firm BGR Group following his brother Tony Hernández’s life sentence for cocaine trafficking. BGR subsequently contributed tens of thousands of dollars to Marco Rubio, who currently holds the position of Trump’s secretary of state.

U.S. prosecutors have previously characterized Hernández as a key player in transforming Honduras into a major narco-state. They accused him of wielding significant influence and collaborating with notorious narcotics traffickers, allowing them to operate freely under his administration. A 2023 investigation by The Grayzone revealed that U.S. officials had long been aware of Hernández’s alleged drug connections but continued to support his government, despite indictments detailing his deep involvement with traffickers.

Years earlier, Trump had publicly commended Hernández during the Israeli American Council National Summit, praising the Honduran leader for his close cooperation with the United States in combating drug trafficking at the southern border.

Following the pardon announcement, Hernández’s pastor informed Honduran media that the decision stemmed from a personal friendship, stating, “Donald Trump was and is a friend of Juan Orlando.” Despite his exoneration from U.S. charges, Honduran officials made it clear that investigations into Hernández’s alleged crimes within the country remain ongoing, and he is likely to face arrest upon his return.

Alongside the pardon, Trump intervened in Honduras’ forthcoming election, urging voters to support National Party candidate Tito Asfura. This party has faced accusations of benefiting from drug money and engaging in past election fraud. Trump warned via Truth Social that U.S. economic support would be contingent on Asfura’s victory, stating, “If Tito Asfura wins for President of Honduras… we will be very supportive. If he doesn’t win, the United States will not be throwing good money after bad.”

Just two days earlier, Trump had taken to social media to advocate for Asfura, calling him “the only real friend of Freedom in Honduras.” He criticized ruling Libre Party candidate Rixi Moncada as a Fidel Castro admirer and described Liberal Party contender Salvador Nasralla as a “borderline Communist.”

The pardon also comes against a broader backdrop of U.S.-linked efforts to shape Honduran politics. Leaked recordings released by the Libre party this fall captured senior National Party figures allegedly plotting to delay vote transmission, manufacture perceptions of fraud, and lean on NGOs, international observers, and the U.S. Embassy to invalidate a Libre victory and force a new election.

The conversations, which referenced “tools that the people at the Embassy gave us,” outlined a strategy to present Nasralla as the initial winner and then demand outside intervention when results shifted.

Hernández’s National Party first consolidated power after a 2009 U.S.-backed coup and later retained control through a 2017 election marred by a suspicious blackout at the vote-tallying center, followed by a sudden reversal that delivered him a second term; the Trump administration quickly recognized his victory.

Now, after Hernández’s U.S. conviction for massive cocaine smuggling, Trump’s decision to free him — combined with economic threats aimed at pushing Hondurans toward a party long tied to narco-trafficking and electoral manipulation — cements Washington’s direct role in shaping the country’s political future.