According to the gospels he's the worst, but was there any political motives or rational reasoning for Judas to "betray" Jesus? Are there any non-religious accounts of who Judas was and what he was trying to do?
You might be interested in the Gospel of Judas , which is one of the many non-canonical gospels of early Christianity. In it Judas is portrayed as following explicit instructions by Jesus Christ. He is given secret knowledge, which is a defining feature among Gnostic writings.
Jesus said, “[Come], that I may teach you about [secrets] no person [has] ever seen.
Jesus tells Judas to betray him, and for doing this he will be reviled by future generations but will receive a great reward over the other disciples.
Judas said to him, “What good is it that I have received it? For you have set me apart for that generation.” Jesus answered and said, “You will become the thirteenth, and you will be cursed by the other generations—and you will come to rule over them. In the last days they will curse your ascent to the holy [generation]…”
Jesus said… “But you will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me.