The Joranumites is a populist organization in Isaac Asimov's Foundation series.
Description[]
Thw Joranumites are members of a populist political movement active on Trantor during the reign of Emperor Cleon I, founded and led by the demagogue Laskin "Jo-Jo" Joranum.
The movement emerged from the frustrations of citizens in Trantor's outer sectors who felt neglected by the Imperial center. Joranum, a charismatic and powerful orator, galvanized this discontent into a potent political force that directly challenged the rule of First Minister Eto Demerzel. Their platform criticized Imperial bureaucracy and aristocracy, but their most effective and dangerous tactic was a vicious smear campaign against Demerzel himself. The Joranumites spread the insidious rumor that the long-serving First Minister was a robot, and therefore an inhuman ruler unfit to govern.
Following Joranum's exile, his chief lieutenant, Gambol Deen Namarti, secretly took control of the remnants of the movement. For a decade, he rebuilt the Joranumites into an underground conspiracy focused on destabilizing the Empire through a campaign of precisely timed infrastructural sabotage—disrupting power, ventilation, and water services across Trantor to foment widespread public discontent. Namarti's ultimate plot was to assassinate First Minister Hari Seldon, but it failed catastrophically and resulted in the death of Emperor Cleon I. This failure led to the final collapse of the Joranumite conspiracy, the capture of Namarti, and the execution of its leadership for treason.
Appearances