Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado called Thursday in Caracas for presidential elections in 2027 and thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for the January 3 operation that removed Nicolas Maduro from power, in her first public remarks since returning from more than 10 months in exile.1,3
Machado, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, appeared at a moment when the country is led by interim President Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro's former vice president, and when Washington has gained broad influence over Venezuelan affairs while also maintaining a working relationship with Rodriguez.1,3,4
“Thanks to their vision, their courage, and their action on January 3, the floodgate to freedom has been opened,” Machado told a news conference in Caracas, naming Trump, his administration and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. She said Rubio “has set out a sequence of events aimed at moving toward a democratic transition that makes clear the holding of presidential elections in 2027.”1
Machado described the transition to democracy as irreversible and said, “The date of the election is the date of liberation,” in Caracas after returning home following 10 months in exile. She said she had come home to “mobilise society” and said her priorities included dismantling the country's repressive system and securing the release of thousands of political prisoners.1,3
Machado returned Sunday and traveled toward Caracas as supporters lined highways and crowded town squares to greet her. She unexpectedly appeared Sunday morning at a Catholic church in western Venezuela, where worshippers applauded, some embraced her and burst into tears, and others handed her rosaries or began singing the national anthem. She had fled Venezuela for Oslo in December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize after spending a year in hiding, and U.S. special forces veterans with an organization called Grey Bull Rescue helped her escape by boat.1,4
Rodriguez sought to downplay the homecoming. Speaking on state television, she said, “The show could have been avoided – the airports are right here.” Speaking to reporters Monday, the interim president dismissed the return as a “show” and called for a more serious approach to politics, while also suggesting that Machado express remorse for her past political positions and defending the government's dialogue with opposition groups.1,4
Shortly before Machado spoke Thursday, Rodriguez assured the nation that there “will be elections” in Venezuela “with the world as witness,” but did not specify a date. Machado said she had not received any message from Rodriguez or from Washington about a possible meeting, and denied having had any contact with Rodriguez. Her movement has not been included in the talks between Rodriguez's government and a faction of the opposition.1,3,4
The return presents a challenge for Washington, which has also backed interim President Delcy Rodriguez while stating the goal of free elections. Asked about Machado's return Sunday, Trump said he knew nothing about it and called her “a very nice woman.” “But we’re doing really well in Venezuela,” he said. Rubio offered a more explicit endorsement of Machado's right to return and has insisted the administration remains committed to free and fair elections, while saying the country must first stabilize its economy, rebuild institutions and establish political freedoms.3,4
For months, the Trump administration has maintained a close working relationship with Rodriguez, a longtime Maduro ally, despite its stated goal of bringing free elections to Venezuela. That arrangement has helped Washington secure influence over the country's oil industry while allowing much of the previous government’s leadership to remain in power.4
Machado criticized a recent U.S. oil agreement under which Venezuela will hand over 20 percent of its oil reserves. “This agreement does not reflect the levels of transparency that Venezuelan society wants,” Machado said. She had previously praised Trump and presented him with her Nobel medal, a prize he feverishly coveted for himself in 2025.1
Machado emerged as Venezuela's leading opposition figure in the 2023 presidential primary. Barred from running in the 2024 election, she rallied supporters behind a substitute candidate movement, traveling across the country to mobilize voters. That campaign won the election, according to independent assessments, but Maduro claimed victory, triggering protests and a government crackdown. Maduro is now in a jail cell in Brooklyn, while hundreds of political prisoners have been released and key political freedoms have not been fully restored.4,1
Venezuelans have used the opening since Maduro's removal to voice grievances over wages, public services and political freedoms. In September alone, the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict documented 1,101 protests, six times the number recorded a year earlier. “The inertia has been broken,” said Oscar Murillo, who heads the human rights organization Provea. In Maracaibo, teacher Gabriela Perez joined recent protests over power outages lasting more than nine hours a day. “We are not happy with how the country is being run. We urgently need change,” she said.4
It is not yet known when Venezuelans will vote. The Christian Science Monitor reported that Machado has called for elections by July 2027, while Al Jazeera and DW reported her call as for presidential elections in 2027 without specifying a month. Under pressure from the United States, Rodriguez's government and a faction of the opposition have started discussing reforms, with Washington expecting a new Supreme Court by the end of the year and a new National Electoral Council in early 2027. “I would venture to call it the most important event since January 3,” said Benigno Alarcon, founder and former director of the Center for Political and Government Studies at Andres Bello Catholic University in Caracas, referring to the day U.S. forces captured Maduro.4,1,3
Constitutional lawyer Jose Ignacio Hernandez, a former special attorney general under the opposition-led interim government, said the country must overcome years of institutional deterioration. “The challenge is not simply to elect a new president but to rebuild a functioning state capable of upholding the rule of law,” he said. That means restoring the independence of the courts, ensuring that police and military forces answer to civilian authorities, and dismantling the influence of armed groups and criminal networks over public institutions. “That approach reflects a central dilemma for Washington,” Alarcon said. “Cooperation with Rodríguez has helped advance U.S. economic interests, but it also relies on political leaders whose government has not yet faced a competitive election.”4
