Speaker biographies

Julio Borges is the founder of Primero Justicia, originally a nongovernmental organization and now a political party, and one of the key leaders in the coalition opposing Hugo Chávez in the 2006 Venezuelan presidential elections. A former congressman in the National Assembly, Mr. Borges launched his presidential candidacy in 2005. In 2006, however, he withdrew his candidacy in order to line up behind a single candidate, Manuel Rosales, and thus strengthen the opposition’s strategy against Chávez. As one of the central leaders of the Venezuelan political landscape, Mr. Borges has undertaken extensive activities geared toward reforming the justice system, organizing the 2004 referendum on Chávez, and strengthening democratic institutions in the country.

Roger F. Noriega is a visiting fellow at AEI, coordinating the Institute’s program on Western Hemisphere issues. Twice appointed by President George W. Bush (and confirmed by the U.S. Senate) and with a ten-year career on Capitol Hill, Mr. Noriega’s breadth of experience offers strategic vision and practical insight on the Americas. As assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, Mr. Noriega managed a 3,000-person team of professionals in Washington, D.C., and fifty diplomatic posts to design and implement political and economic strategies in Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean. As U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States (OAS), Mr. Noriega coordinated complex and sensitive multilateral diplomacy in a thirty-four-member international organization to bolster OAS efforts to promote trade, fight illicit drugs, and defend democracy. Mr. Noriega has held various other positions, including senior policy advisor with the U.S. mission to the OAS; many program management and public affairs positions with the U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.S. Department of State; press secretary and foreign policy advisor for U.S. representative Robert Whittaker (R-Kan.); and research assistant for the secretary of state of Kansas.

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