Berenice Xuyami Quezada Herrera (born 28 September 1993) is a

Nicaraguan Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America after Guatemala and ...

model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Nicaragua 2017 and represented

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

at the

Miss Universe 2017 Miss Universe 2017 was the 66th Miss Universe pageant, held at The AXIS in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on 26 November 2017. At the end of the event, Iris Mittenaere of France crowned Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Africa as Miss Unive ...

pageant. In the

2021 Nicaraguan general election General elections were held in Nicaragua on 7 November 2021 to elect the President, the National Assembly and members of the Central American Parliament. President Daniel Ortega of the Sandinista National Liberation Front sought re-election, w ...

, Quezada was the running mate of Oscar Sobalvarro, presidential candidate for the Citizens for Liberty (CxL) party. However on August 3, she was placed under house arrest and barred from running.

Early life and education

Quezada was born in Rama, Nicaragua. Quezada holds a degree in Tourism and Hotel Management.

Miss Nicaragua 2017

On March 25, 2017, Quezada was crowned Miss Nicaragua 2017 by her predecessor Marina Jacoby. Quezada represented

but did not place.

Politics

Following mass arrests of opposition candidates for president in the

as well as other civic leaders, and the cancellation of the legal status of other opposition parties, the Citizens for Liberty (CxL) party declared its own vice-president, former

Contra Contra may refer to: Places * Contra, Virginia * Contra Costa Canal, an aqueduct in the U.S. state of California * Contra Costa County, California * Tenero-Contra, a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerla ...

commander Oscar Sobalvarro, to be its nominee for president, and Quezada was named his running mate. Quezada was a visible participant in the

2018–2021 Nicaraguan protests The protests against Daniel Ortega were a series of protests against President of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega and actions performed by his government, the dismantling of the opposition, and violence against peaceful protesters. The protests began in ...

; however she also modeled for ''Nicaragua Diseña'', one of the media outlets directed by Camila Ortega, daughter of incumbent president

Daniel Ortega José Daniel Ortega Saavedra (; ; born 11 November 1945) is a Nicaraguan politician and dictator who has been the president of Nicaragua, co-president of Nicaragua since 18 February 2025, alongside his wife Rosario Murillo. He was the 54th an ...

and his wife vice-president

Rosario Murillo Rosario María Murillo Zambrana (; born 22 June 1951) is a Nicaraguan politician and poet, who is serving as co-president of Nicaragua along with her husband, President Daniel Ortega, since February 2025. Before this, she served as the vice ...

, whom she and Sobalvarro were running against in the 2021 election. Quezada has also made social media posts about supporting their party, the

Sandinista National Liberation Front The Sandinista National Liberation Front (, FSLN) is a socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after Augusto César Sandino, who led the Nicaraguan resistan ...

. On the night of August 3, 2021, Quezada was put under house arrest and barred from running.

References

External links

Official Miss Nicaragua website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quezada, Berenice 1994 births Living people Miss Nicaragua winners Nicaraguan beauty pageant winners Miss Universe 2017 contestants Nicaraguan female models