John Pence
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John Edward Pence is an attorney, American businessman and political advisor who worked as a senior political advisor for President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
. During Trump's 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, Pence engaged with Latino voters and advocated for Trump's policies regarding
Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
. He is the son of former Congressman
Greg Pence Gregory Joseph Pence (born November 14, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Indiana's 6th congressional district from 2019 to 2025. The district serves ...
and nephew of former Vice President
Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
.


Early life and education

John was born in Columbus, Indiana and is the son of
Greg Pence Gregory Joseph Pence (born November 14, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Indiana's 6th congressional district from 2019 to 2025. The district serves ...
, a
United States Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
for
Indiana's 6th congressional district Indiana's 6th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Indiana. The district takes in a portion of eastern and central Indiana as of the 2020 census, including Columbus, Indiana, Columbus and Richmond, Indiana, Ric ...
, and Denise Pence. He is the nephew of Vice President of the United States
Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
. Pence has three sibling and attended Columbus North High School. Pence graduated with a major in the Spanish from the
College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...
. During his college career, Pence studied abroad at the National University of La Plata in Argentina, where he observed President of Venezuela
Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; ; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician, Bolivarian Revolution, revolutionary, and Officer (armed forces), military officer who served as the 52nd president of Venezuela from 1999 until De ...
receive an award and attack the United States while students applauded him. Pence later spent time teaching the
English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...
in
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 ...
under
President of Nicaragua The co-presidents of Nicaragua (), officially known as the presidency of the Republic of Nicaragua (), are the heads of state and head of government, government of Nicaragua. The office was created in the Constitution of 1854. From 1825 until ...
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 ...
. After these experiences, Pence said that he witnessed
socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
ruining
Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
. Pence later received his
Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...
from the
Indiana University Maurer School of Law The Indiana University Maurer School of Law is the law school of Indiana University Bloomington, a public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. Established in 1842, the school is named after alumnus Michael S. "Mickey" Maurer, an Indianapo ...
. He also received his
Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...
from
New York University Stern School of Business The Leonard N. Stern School of Business (also NYU Stern, Stern School of Business, or simply Stern) is the business school of New York University, a private research university based in New York City. Founded as the School of Commerce, Accounts ...
.


Career

In August 2016, Pence began working for the
Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign Donald Trump ran a successful campaign for the 2016 U.S. presidential election. He formally announced his campaign on June 16, 2015, at Trump Tower in New York City, initially battling for the Republican Party's nomination. On May 26, 20 ...
. During the
presidency of Donald Trump Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to: * First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021 * Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025 See also * ...
, Pence worked as the deputy executive director of Trump's 2020 presidential campaign. While serving in the position, the Republican National Committee (RNC) paid $37,000 a month to rent an office in
Trump Tower Trump Tower is a 58-story, mixed-use condominium skyscraper at 721–725 Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, between East 56th and 57th Streets. The building contains the headquarters for the Trump Organiza ...
for Pence according to
CNBC CNBC is an American List of business news channels, business news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group, a unit of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The network broadcasts live business news and analysis programming during the morning, Day ...
. CNBC also reported that Pence was paid $12,000 per month by the Trump campaign and an additional $12,000 monthly by the RNC.
David Bossie David Norman Bossie (born November 1, 1965) is an American political activism, political activist. Since 2000, he has been president and chairman of conservative advocacy group Citizens United (organization), Citizens United and in 2016, Bossie w ...
and
Corey Lewandowski Corey R. Lewandowski (; born September 18, 1973) is an American political operative, lobbyist, political commentator and author who is politically associated with Donald Trump. He was the first campaign manager of Trump's 2016 presidential ca ...
in their book '' Let Trump Be Trump'' write that Pence was responsible for the "crowd-building process" and sophistication of Trump's campaign. According to Trump staffer
Omarosa Manigault Newman Omarosa Onee Newman (; Manigault; born February 5, 1974), known mononymously as Omarosa, is an American reality television star, lawyer, author, former political consultant and White House aide. She held White House staff roles during the presid ...
, Pence was credited for the chants heard during Trump rallies, with the former staffer saying that he organized section leaders at events to initiate certain chants. ''Mother Jones'' noted that Pence was instrumental for building the support of
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
Latinos during the 2020 campaign, highlighting his ability to speak Spanish while also noting Pence's background in Argentina and Nicaragua. The Trump campaign referred to Pence as "Juan Pence" due to his many Spanish-language videos on social media according to Mike C. Bender's book ''Frankly, We Did Win This Election: The Inside Story of How Trump Lost''. During the
first impeachment of Donald Trump Donald Trump, serving as the 45th president of the United States, was impeached for the first time on December 18, 2019. On that date, the House of Representatives adopted two articles of impeachment against Trump: abuse of power and obstru ...
, Pence met with
Latinos for Trump Latinos for Trump () is a coalition of Latino supporters of Donald Trump, formed in the U.S. state of Florida in June 2019. As of the 2024 presidential election cycle it has expanded beyond Florida with an active presence nationally, especially ...
to defend and promote the president's campaign. He also was one of the main advocates for
regime change Regime change is the partly forcible or coercive replacement of one government regime with another. Regime change may replace all or part of the state's most critical leadership system, administrative apparatus, or bureaucracy. Regime change may ...
against President
Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...
, promoting the Trump administration's involvement in the
Venezuelan presidential crisis The Venezuelan presidential crisis was a political crisis concerning the leadership and the legitimate president of Venezuela between 2019 and 2023, with the nation and the world divided in support for Nicolás Maduro or Juan Guaidó. Venezu ...
and its support for
Juan Guaidó Juan Gerardo Antonio Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan politician and opposition figure. He belonged to the social-democratic party Popular Will, and was a federal deputy to the National Assembly representing the state of V ...
. Pence signed the ''
Madrid Charter The Madrid Forum (Spanish: ''Foro Madrid'') is an anti-communist organization created on 26 October 2020 by the Disenso Foundation think tank of the conservative Spanish political party Vox. Background According to ''The Rio Times'', the aim ...
'', a document drafted by the
right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...
Spanish party Vox that describes left-wing groups as enemies of
Ibero-America Ibero-America (, ) or Iberian America is generally considered to be the region in the Americas comprising countries or territories where Spanish or Portuguese are predominant languages (usually former colony, territories of Spain or Portugal). Sp ...
involved in a "criminal project" that are "under the umbrella of the Cuban regime". In September 2021, Pence was named
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
of ACE Specialties, an American company based in
Lafayette, Louisiana Lafayette ( , ) is the most populous city in and parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, Lafayette Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located along the Vermilion River (Louisiana), Vermilion River. It is Louisiana's List of municipaliti ...
that markets merchandise and assists with fundraising for conservative political candidates. John was an attorney at the law firm o
Ice Miller LLP
which is one of Indiana’s oldest law firms founded in 1910. On January 6, 2025 he launched Frontline Government Relations with Trump 2024 Senior Advisor Michael Glassner.


Political positions

Pence is a member of the Republican Party. He has been described as having a "
populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...
appeal" with skillful
public speaking Public speaking, is the practice of delivering speeches to a live audience. Throughout history, public speaking has held significant cultural, religious, and political importance, emphasizing the necessity of effective rhetorical skills. It all ...
abilities by the ''
Carroll Daily Times Herald The ''Carroll Times Herald'' is a twice-weekly newspaper in Carroll, Iowa Carroll is a city in, and the county seat of, Carroll County, Iowa, United States, along the Middle Raccoon River. The population was 10,321 in the 2020 census. His ...
''. The ''Daily Herald Times'' also wrote that Pence described the Democratic Party as wanting to control Americans lives instead of promoting freedom, with Pence saying that
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
would be a Republican in the present day citing Kennedy's " Ask not what your country can do for you" quote, stating the Democratic Party was "not about doing the selfless work". Pence supports
free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...
s,
limited government In political philosophy, limited government is the concept of a government limited in power. It is a key concept in the history of liberalism.Amy Gutmann, "How Limited Is Liberal Government" in Liberalism Without Illusions: Essays on Liberal ...
and
federalism Federalism is a mode of government that combines a general level of government (a central or federal government) with a regional level of sub-unit governments (e.g., provinces, State (sub-national), states, Canton (administrative division), ca ...
as outlined in multiple opinion pieces for
Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...
.


Personal life

Pence married Giovanna Coia, the cousin of Trump aide
Kellyanne Conway Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway (née Fitzpatrick; born January 20, 1967) is an American political consultant and pollster who served as Senior Counselor to the President in the first presidency of Donald Trump for three years from 2017 and 2020. ...
, on September 14, 2019, in
Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...
at the
St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church is a historic church in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Atlantic City, Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. It was built in 1905 and added to the National Register of Historic Plac ...
in a ceremony monitored by local law enforcement and the
United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to American political leaders, thei ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pence, John 1989 births Living people People from Columbus, Indiana College of William & Mary alumni Indiana University Maurer School of Law alumni New York University Stern School of Business alumni National University of La Plata alumni