The Cerimedo Scandal (Part 2)

By Randy Alonso Falcon on September 6, 2025

Since his arrest in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, on August 18, after ordering the murder of his girlfriend, Fernando Cerimedo has become a fan spreading filth everywhere.

The newly minted electoral consultant for Latin America’s far right has gone from being a man who was flattered and sought after to a true pariah.

The revelations—sums of money, recordings, and bot farms—that have gradually come to light are unraveling a dark continental web of election rigging, manipulation of public opinion, political corruption, and the buying of favors, causing unease in Washington, Miami, Mexico City, San Salvador, Tegucigalpa, Bogotá, Lima, Brasília, Buenos Aires, Santiago de Chile, and La Paz.

The tentacles of this powerful techno-fascist network even reach as far as Madrid.

A story that began to the rhythm of samba and folk music

According to an investigation by Julián Macías, Fernando Cerimedo got his start in political communications with a course taught by Durán Barba at a U.S. university, where he crossed paths with Eduardo Bolsonaro.

Durán Barba was accused of orchestrating smear campaigns in several Latin American countries and praised his own strategies in a chapter of his book *The Art of Winning*, where he stated: “On occasion, a politician’s attack was so brutal that his opponent was psychologically destroyed, and even drove to suicide.” ^[

Thanks to that encounter in the United States, Cerimedo worked on the 2018 campaign that Jair Bolsonaro won. In an interview, he stated that he spent the last 45 days of the campaign in Brazil and that he then worked with lesser-known candidates until, in 2021, he was able to join Mauricio Macri’s political circle in Argentina.

Following Jair Bolsonaro’s defeat by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in October 2022, the Argentine consultant reappeared on the scene in Brazil, hosting a live internet broadcast in which he cast doubt on the credibility of Brazil’s electronic voting machines.

In a live stream on his YouTube channel on November 4, 2022, he shared data and information about the Brazilian electoral system, which was later refuted by the courts. His broadcast was viewed by more than 415,000 people.

Brazilian police describe that broadcast as premeditated because he wanted to “create a false atmosphere of public support for the coup d’état that was being planned.”

In an 884-page investigation conducted by the Brazilian Federal Police, Cerimedo—who is mentioned 66 times—was accused of disseminating “what he called an investigation” into the Brazilian elections, which was then “spread by those under investigation” through various channels on multiple occasions.

The posts were accompanied by the phrase “#BrazilWasStolen,” a campaign that gained traction on social media.

Manipulation on social media was one of the driving forces behind the mob that attempted a coup d’état in Brasília in January 2023, alleging election fraud and attempting to thwart Lula’s presidential inauguration.

Brazil faced more than 230 roadblocks over the course of about ten days following the end of the second round of the elections. The coup supporters’ encampments in front of military facilities lasted two months. The one located in front of the army headquarters in Brasília was only dispersed after the acts of vandalism and violence on January 8, 2023.

That’s Not Being Discussed

It is documented that Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro, the former president’s son, met with Cerimedo in Buenos Aires during the 2022 Brazilian campaign. Journalistic investigations also revealed contacts between his digital network and members of the then-president’s inner circle.

Politicians from Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party are the main spreaders of fake news on Brazil’s social media platforms, according to a 2023 study by the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism.

That is why the silence surrounding the Argentine—which has characterized the Brazilian clan for nearly two weeks—is so striking, and there is no indication that any of its members is ready to issue a statement.

Perhaps the most notable silence comes from the presidential candidate, Flávio Bolsonaro, who did not say a word during a lengthy interview with TV Globo, watched by millions of viewers.

The arrest also did not prompt any statement from Eduardo Bolsonaro, the brother of candidate Flávio. This is despite the long-standing friendship that has bound him for years to the Argentine currently imprisoned in the Bolivian prison of Palmasola.

In February of this year, Eduardo presented his “friend” with the award for best Spanish-speaking political consultant at President Donald Trump’s residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida.

These meetings—and others that took place in Buenos Aires, Balneario Camboriú, and Washington, to name a few—reveal an undeniable closeness.

PT Congressman Paulo Texeira argues that it is urgent to shed light on the depth and resources involved in this political convergence. He suggests monitoring the latest initiatives on which they have been working together.

Rui Falcão also points out that the Argentine advisor, who worked directly or indirectly on recent campaigns in Bolivia, Honduras, and Peru, is not merely a specialist in political communication.

“Cerimedo’s coup-plotting intentions and his strong ties to the Bolsonaro family, Milei, and the international far-right movement are well known,” he notes.

“It is essential to find out as soon as possible whom Cerimedo serves. Everything points to this being an attempt at foreign intervention in Brazilian democracy and against the stability of Latin America,” says Falcão.

As the media reconstructs the events of the weeks leading up to the August 17 attack, it is noted that Eduardo Bolsonaro and Cerimedo held a live conversation on social media on July 23, dedicated to questioning electronic voting machines and revisiting arguments similar to those put forward by Jair Bolsonaro following the 2022 elections, prior to the coup attempt.

Eduardo and Cerimedo cited a CIA document that, according to them, fueled suspicions about electronic voting systems and, at the same time, could serve to sow doubts about the October elections in the event of a Lula victory. They also criticized Alexandre de Moraes, a justice on the Federal Supreme Court who presided over the case that convicted Jair Bolsonaro and several generals.

Eduardo Bolsonaro spoke from the United States, where he had traveled with the mission of lobbying the White House, the State Department, and Congress. From there, he sought to strengthen ties with Trump supporters and increase pressure on the Workers’ Party (PT) government.

Still recovering from the attack, Nadia Beller, Cerimedo’s former partner who was assaulted, told the Brazilian press that she had heard him speak of his willingness to work alongside the Bolsonaros in the current campaign and his desire to “take down” Lula, whom he hates with the same passion as he does Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and former Bolivian President Evo Morales.

Beller’s revelations would take on greater significance days later, when the Brazilian fact-checking agency Lupa detected a disinformation campaign about an alleged “invasion” of Moroccan immigrants into Brazil, for which President Lula was blamed. “Wave of Moroccan immigrants arrives in Brazil thanks to Lula” is the most commonly used headline. The Lupa observatory notes that the campaign began in *La Derecha Diario* and was replicated on accounts in Argentina and later in Brazil, in Portuguese and Spanish.

Based on Dr. Beller’s revelations, PT Congressman Rui Falcão requested that the Brazilian Supreme Court activate cooperation agreements with Bolivia to preserve the evidence seized from Cerimedo, primarily the equipment that, according to Bolivian authorities, was part of a “bot farm.”

Falcão wants the Brazilian Federal Police to analyze the material to determine whether that structure was or was going to be used in the Brazilian election campaign in favor of the Bolsonaros.

The Honduran Connection

Nasry Asfura was trailing far behind in third place in the Honduran election polls and ended up winning the 2025 presidential election. Many attributed his success to the direct backing he received from U.S. President Donald Trump. And there is no doubt that this played a role, but behind the U.S. president’s support lay a network of manipulation, extortion, and electoral fraud.

At the helm of this political scam were the U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies, the Trump and Milei administrations, as well as the released drug trafficker Juan Orlando Hernández, as revealed by the Hondurasgate audio recordings. And in operational command was the now-disgraced Fernando Cerimedo.

Marlon Ochoa, a former member of the National Electoral Council (CNE), accused far-right consultant Fernando Cerimedo of committing fraud in the election won by Nasry Asfura on November 30 of last year.

Ochoa stated on X that he handed over the recordings to the prosecutor’s office in December 2025, in which Cerimedo—then an advisor to the National Party—can be heard talking about “inserting votes in favor of Asfura into certain ballot boxes, removing ballots that did not favor that candidacy, aligning the armed forces, and preventing a vote-by-vote recount.”

He noted that the Public Prosecutor’s Office announced an investigation and requested a forensic analysis from the Colombian judiciary, but the Supreme Court of Justice later ordered the investigation to be suspended at the request of Councilors Cossette López-Osorio and Ana Paola Hall.

Ochoa questioned the certification of the 2025 election results.

“Cerimedo is an international criminal, an electoral saboteur in Latin America, sheltered under the cloak of impunity provided by President Donald Trump,” Ochoa asserted.

Marlon Ochoa

Speaking to Radio 750, Ochoa highlighted the relationship between Cerimedo and Asfura, who won the November 2025 election: “Cerimedo served as a communications advisor during the November 2025 election.”

But, he said, behind the scenes, his role was different: “We thought his role was that of a digital advisor, but his duties went beyond that. According to interviews, he served as the main liaison between the candidate and Trump”.

And from this position, he played a key role in what they say was a clear case of fraud: “Cerimedo set up the party’s official parallel data center, through which the National Party—now controlled by Donald Trump—released election results before the National Council. And ultimately, they coincided with a very turbulent election”.

“Based on what we’ve seen of the coverage of his role in other countries, we believe the functions he assumed in the campaigns are being underestimated,” Ochoa warned. “In reality, what happened in Honduras went beyond the roles assigned to him. He was the main operator of the electoral fraud on instructions from the United States,” he warned.

He added: “What we could say is that an independent communications consultant would find it very difficult to secure contracts in five different elections without the backing of the United States”.

The former council member directly linked his subsequent dismissal to the allegations he made public. In April 2026, the National Congress, with the support of the National Party and Liberal Party caucuses, approved an impeachment proceeding against him that led to his expulsion from the CNE. Ochoa described the process as “an inquisition-style trial” and warned that the real objective was to cover up the crimes he had denounced. Furthermore, he has publicly maintained that there are plans to attempt to take his life, a matter he has already brought to the attention of the authorities.

“Let it be determined who hired Cerimedo? Who paid for his activities in Honduras? With whom did he coordinate? What platforms and structures did he use? And what connection might exist between those operations and the allegations of manipulation, smear campaigns, disinformation, and foreign interference during the electoral process?

“And if the Judiciary hindered or prevented the Public Prosecutor’s Office from delving deeper into certain electoral investigations, the Honduran people have the right to know why, who ordered it, and on what grounds.

We are not asking for scapegoats to be created. We are demanding that the truth be uncovered.”

But in Honduras, the ruling party remains silent in the face of any attempt to launch an investigation into the role he played during the 2025 elections as a political advisor to the National Party and a strategist for the Latin American far right.

When, in February of this year, his longtime ally Javier Negrè staged an event in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, to honor Cerimedo as the best Hispanic political consultant, the Argentine boasted in his speech about his role in the electoral victories of Rodrigo Paz in Bolivia and Nasri Asfura in Honduras.

The award was announced as the “Hispanic Political Consultant of the Year.” The organizers stated that the Argentine had been chosen for “his innovative work in election campaigns, digital communication, and political strategies in the Hispanic world.”

The award, presented by none other than Eduardo Bolsonaro, particularly highlighted his performance in advising presidential campaigns for right-wing leaders in Latin America and his ability to build political communication structures based on social media and digital platforms.

But the stories about this shadowy figure don’t end there.

to see Part 1 of this important series go to https://resumen-english.org/2026/09/how-did-fernando-cerimedo-build-a-bridge-between-miami-and-political-power-in-washington/#more-36408

Source: Cubadebate translation Resumen Latinoamericano – English