and the Modern Revolutionary Party for the past general elections on 15 May 2016. Abinader was, along with Soraya Aquino, one of the two presidential candidates in 2016 who had not been born during the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo (1930-1961). Giuliani Partners, specifically Rudy Giuliani and John Huvane, advised Abinader in the campaign as security consultants. 2020 presidential election Abinader successfully ran for President in the 2020 election. Rudy Giuliani and John Huvane once again advised Abinader in the campaign as security consultants. President of the Dominican Republic Abinader was sworn in as the President of the Dominican Republic on 16 August 2020. The inauguration had a reduced number of guests due to the measures taken for the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the international guests was the Secretary of State of the United States, Mike Pompeo, who attended on behalf of President Donald Trump. He made the fight against illegal immigration one of his priorities. In February 2022, he began construction of a separation wall with Haiti, which will extend over 164 of the 380 kilometers of border. Foreign relations U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was among those in attendance at Abinader's swearing-in ceremony. Under Luis Abinader's leadership, the Dominican Republic is set to form stronger economic and diplomatic ties with the United States. Under his administration, the Dominican Republic became one of the countries that, along with the US, voted to maintain the arms embargo on Iran. He is close to the Lima Group, which brings together conservative governments in the Americas to isolate Venezuela and contribute to the fall of its government. On 24 February 2022, Abinader released a statement denouncing Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Personal life Abinader has been married to Raquel Arbaje Soneh since 1995. She is the daughter of businesspersons Elías Arbaje Farah and Margarita Soneh, both of Lebanese descent. They have three children: Esther Patricia, Graciela Lucía, and Adriana Margarita. References External links Biography by CIDOB (in Spanish) |- 1967 births Living people Presidents of the Dominican Republic Dominican Republic businesspeople Dominican Republic economists Dominican Revolutionary Party politicians Dominican Liberation Party politicians Dominican Republic Roman Catholics Hult International Business School alumni People from Santo Domingo People named in the Pandora Papers Santo Domingo Institute of Technology alumni 21st-century Dominican Republic politicians