José Serrano has doctorate in Jurisprudence and lawyership in Justice Tribunals of the Republic of Ecuador by the University of Azuay.

[1] Serrano got his first ministerial post under President Alfredo Palacio when he was made Minister of Labour and Employment in June 2005.

After a case in which a suspect of murder was subjected to indigenous justice, President Correa called this treatment "a monstrosity" and "this is torture, this is barbarity".

[9] On 15 November 2016 Serrano resigned as Minister of the Interior, to become the lead candidate of the PAIS Alliance in the 2017 Ecuadorian general election.

[11] The National Assembly accused him of a political conspiracy to divide up the different commissions and deal with right-wing parties.

[1] In July 2024, Serrano registered as a pre-candidate for the Democratic Center nomination for President of Ecuador in the upcoming 2025 general election.

[1] The US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) today honored Ecuador's Interior Minister, José Serrano Salgado, in recognition of the results of the counternarcotics fight in the South American country.

[15] The Municipality of the Metropolitan District of Quito has awarded the merit award "María Verónica Cordovez" to the Minister of the Interior, José Serrano Salgado, "for his exceptional services in internal security" for the benefit of the inhabitants of the capital of the Republic.