Juan Pablo Guanipa

Juan Pablo Isidoro Guanipa Villalobos is a Venezuelan lawyer and politician who served as deputy and First Vice President of the National Assembly, and leader of the Justice First political party. His 2017 election as governor of Zulia was controversially annulled by the national government after Guanipa refused to take an oath imposed on candidates after the election. He was a presidential candidate in the 2018 Venezuelan presidential election until the opposition decided to boycott the election. Guanipa was also the regional coordinator of the Justice First party in Zulia and chair of the Maracaibo Posible foundation. After months of harassment by the government, Guanipa was detained by the Maduro government in May 2025. He was released in 8 February 2026, but hours later, he was kidnapped by armed men and an order of house arrest was filed by Venezuelan authorities. After house arrest at his residence in Maracaibo, he was released under a general amnesty law on February 19, 2026.