Venezuela’s opposition leader Maria Corina Machado returns from exile

The Nobel laureate’s homecoming follows national protests demanding free elections.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado arrives at a church in Lara, Venezuela on October 25, 2026 [Vente Venezuela Press/Reuters]

Venezuela’s opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has successfully returned to the country after more than 10 months in exile.

Machado announced her arrival on social media on Sunday, writing, “I am here. With you.”

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The current opposition leader, Edmundo Gonzalez, confirmed the news, writing on X that “our leader, my dear Maria Corina, is on Venezuelan soil”.

The Comando Con Venezuela political organisation shared footage of Machado arriving at a church in Lara, where she was greeted by supporters.

Machado first disappeared from public life after being briefly arrested in January 2025. She re-emerged last December in Norway, where she won the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to challenge Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro. Maduro was abducted from Caracas by the United States military in January 2026.

Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodriguez has stood in as acting president since then, with the endorsement of US President Donald Trump, and has cooperated with his administration regarding reforms in the country, as well as a deal to grant the US control of over 65 billion barrels’ worth of Venezuela’s oil reserves.

Delcy Rodríguez, acting president of Venezuela, addresses the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York City on September 23, 2026 [Frank Franklin/AP]

Calls for elections to be held

Rodriguez’s presidency has extended far beyond the 90-day period she was authorised to serve following Maduro’s removal. But she has yet to call an election despite public demand and despite her promise to do so at the United Nations General Assembly in September. The US maintains that the country is not ready yet.

Earlier this week, thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets to call for elections in the first nationwide opposition protest in nearly two years.

Demonstrators hold up a sign supporting opposition leader Maria Corina Machado in Caracas, Venezuela on October 22, 2026 [Jesus Vargas/Getty Images]

Although the opposition is widely believed to have won Venezuela’s disputed 2024 elections, Trump has cast doubt on Machado’s abilities to lead, claiming in January that she “doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country”.

Machado presented Trump with her Nobel medal when visiting him in the White House weeks later, in what she said was “a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom”. The US leader has repeatedly voiced his desire to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize himself.

Machado has made previous unsuccessful attempts to enter Venezuela. In September, her team said she had made seven attempts in the space of a few weeks.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on X that “the conditions allowing for the safe return of Ms. Machado to Venezuela is the direct result of the U.S. supported reconciliation talks which has already seen hundreds of political prisoners freed and hundreds of political opposition figures return from exile.”

Asked to comment about Machado’s return, Trump told reporters on Sunday, “I don’t know anything about it, but I think she’s a very nice woman.”

“She gave me her Nobel Prize, so how can I say anything else? And I hope she’s safe.”

这位诺贝尔奖得主回国之前，全国各地爆发了要求举行自由选举的抗议活动。

2026年10月25日，委内瑞拉反对派领导人玛丽亚·科琳娜·马查多抵达委内瑞拉拉腊州的一座教堂。[委内瑞拉新闻社/路透社]

委内瑞拉反对派领导人玛丽亚·科琳娜·马查多在流亡十个多月后成功返回该国。

马查多周日在社交媒体上宣布了她的到来，她写道：“我来了。和你们在一起。”

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现任反对派领导人埃德蒙多·冈萨雷斯证实了这一消息，他在 X 上写道：“我们的领导人，我亲爱的玛丽亚·科里娜，已经身处委内瑞拉的土地上”。

委内瑞拉突击队政治组织分享了马查多抵达拉腊州一座教堂的视频，她在那里受到了支持者的欢迎。

马查多在2025年1月短暂被捕后首次从公众视野中消失。去年12月，她在挪威重新出现，并因其挑战委内瑞拉总统尼古拉斯·马杜罗的努力而荣获诺贝尔和平奖。马杜罗于2026年1月在加拉加斯被美国军方绑架。

此后，在美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的支持下，委内瑞拉副总统德尔西·罗德里格斯一直担任代理总统，并与特朗普政府合作进行国家改革，以及达成一项协议，使美国控制价值超过 650 亿桶的委内瑞拉石油储备。

2026年9月23日，委内瑞拉代理总统德尔西·罗德里格斯在纽约联合国总部举行的第81届联合国大会上发表讲话。[弗兰克·富兰克林/美联社]

呼吁举行选举

罗德里格斯的总统任期远远超过了马杜罗下台后她被授权的90天期限。尽管公众强烈要求，尽管她本人也曾在9月的联合国大会上承诺举行选举，但她至今仍未宣布举行选举。美国方面则坚持认为，委内瑞拉尚未做好准备。

本周早些时候，数千名委内瑞拉人走上街头，呼吁举行选举，这是近两年来首次全国性的反对派抗议活动。

2026年10月22日，在委内瑞拉加拉加斯，示威者举着支持反对派领导人玛丽亚·科琳娜·马查多的标语。[Jesus Vargas/Getty Images]

尽管人们普遍认为反对派赢得了委内瑞拉备受争议的 2024 年大选，但特朗普对马查多的领导能力表示怀疑，他在 1 月份声称她“在国内既没有支持也没有尊重”。

几周后，马查多在白宫拜访特朗普时，向他颁发了诺贝尔奖章，她说这是“对他捍卫我们自由的独特贡献的认可”。这位美国领导人曾多次表示，他本人也希望获得诺贝尔和平奖。

马查多此前曾多次试图进入委内瑞拉，但均未成功。今年9月，她的团队表示，她在短短几周内就进行了七次尝试。

美国国务卿马可·卢比奥在X电视台宣布，“马查多女士能够安全返回委内瑞拉，是美国支持的和解谈判的直接成果，这些谈判已经使数百名政治犯获释，数百名政治反对派人士结束流亡返回委内瑞拉。”

当被问及马查多回归一事时，特朗普周日告诉记者：“我对此一无所知，但我认为她是一位非常好的女性。”

“她把诺贝尔奖颁给了我，我还能说什么呢？我希望她平安无事。”