Al Cárdenas

Alberto Remigio Cárdenas Pardo (born January 3, 1948) is a Cuban-born American lawyer, politician and conservative activist who is a partner in the law firm of Squire Patton Boggs and in the Advocacy Group at Cardenas Partners. He has been named as one of Washington D.C.'s top lobbyists by The Hill newspaper. Cardenas was a member of the Board of Trustees of Florida A&M University.

Life and career Cárdenas was born in Havana, Cuba. He graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and received his associate's degree from Miami Dade Community College, a bachelor's degree from Florida Atlantic University, and his Juris Doctor from Seton Hall University. He is an alumnus of Florida Atlantic University's Eta Mu chapter of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.

Cardenas has been active in the Republican Party throughout his career. He was responsible for the transition of the United States Department of Commerce at the beginning of the Ronald Reagan administration, and was appointed the first U.S. ambassador to St. Kitts and Nevis in 1983. He served on the board of the Federal National Mortgage Association from 1985 to 1990, as an appointee of Reagan and George H. W. Bush. He represented Florida as a delegate at every Republican National Convention held from 1976 to 2008. as American Conservative Union Chairman. He was succeeded by Matt Schlapp.

Cardenas was a senior adviser and fundraiser for the Jeb Bush 2016 presidential campaign until it was suspended.

In October 2024, Cárdenas announced that he would vote for Kamala Harris.

Personal life

On March 2, 2019, Cardenas married Nicaraguan-American political strategist and commentator Ana Navarro. She is also a contributor on CNN and co-host of The View.