His father died in 1949 when José Luis was just 6 years old. His mother was an activist of the Acción Democrática party, so during the dictatorship of Marcos Pérez Jiménez he decided to go into exile in Guayaquil, Ecuador with his two youngest children. Upon his return, José Luis entered the Escuela Técnica Industrial de Caracas, where he studied as an electrical technician.