Machado pushes for new elections in first news conference since returning to Venezuela

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Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said she returned to the country from exile this past week to mobilize society as she pushes for new elections next year.

“I have returned to finish a task and to fulfill a mandate,” she said Thursday in her first news conference since her return.

The 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate thanked the US government for leading a democratic transition process in the South American country, saying Secretary of State Marco Rubio has outlined a sequence of events that includes holding presidential elections in 2027.

“This addresses a national urgency with a sense of responsibility. It has also made clear — based on what has transpired in recent days — that the democratic transition is irreversible,” she said.

Neither the United States nor the Venezuelan government have set a date for new elections.

Machado returned on Sunday to crowds of cheering supporters, whom she said all demanded a free Venezuela. “I heard only one word, the same one: freedom,” she said Thursday.

Machado left in December for Norway to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, which she was awarded for promoting democratic rights in her country.

A month after she left, the United States toppled and captured her rival, strongman leader Nicolas Maduro , in a military operation on January 3.

“Thanks to the actions of the United States government, Maduro is facing justice, and the floodgates of freedom have been opened,” Machado said Thursday.

Within days of Maduro’s ouster, Washington began working with his successor, acting President Delcy Rodríguez , to enact political reforms and steer the nation toward a democratic transition. Rodriguez has so far met just about every demand from the US, including releasing hundreds of political prisoners, allowing some exiles to return home and making it easier for US companies to invest in the country.

The US has also brokered reconciliation talks between the acting government and several high-profile opposition figures such as Dinorah Figuera.

Shortly before Machado’s speech, Rodríguez also addressed the nation.

She did not directly acknowledge Machado’s return, but addressed her detractors in the recorded message, saying: “To those who think differently from me, I do not ask you to change your opinion. I ask you to judge by the facts. Less fighting, more solutions.”

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Regarding the electoral calendar in the South American country — an open question since Maduro’s capture — Rodríguez reiterated that “there will be elections, as mandated by our Constitution.”

“The election should not be a problem or make us go back to times of confrontation that no one wants anymore,” she urged.

She also announced the continuation of reforms, including a promise that no one would be detained without judicial warrants, a long held demand from human rights groups.

Rodríguez also revealed that the government is assessing whether non-essential assets currently held by the government will be offered to the private sector, or to former owners. The acting president said the process is “already well underway. Private property is a protected right guaranteed by our Constitution.”

Washington has so far sidelined Machado from the political transition process despite having a friendly relationship with the opposition leader.

In January, Machado gifted US President Donald Trump her Nobel Prize, hoping the gesture would nudge him toward supporting her fight to become Venezuela’s next leader.

Trump accepted the gift without endorsing her. He had previously called her a “very nice woman” but claimed she “does not have the support or the respect within the country” to lead it.

Still, Machado has continued to back the Trump administration while simultaneously condemning the acting Venezuelan government that it’s been working with, which she considers a continuation of the repressive Maduro regime .

During her 10 months in exile, Machado repeatedly vowed to return home and hinted that she would run for president if an election were held.

She had attempted to re-enter Venezuela several times over the past few months without success.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday the US had spoken with the interim Venezuelan authorities about Machado’s return and claimed that any “impediments” to her arrival “had nothing to do with us.”

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委内瑞拉反对派领导人玛丽亚·科琳娜·马查多表示，她上周结束流亡生活返回委内瑞拉，旨在动员社会各界，推动明年举行新的选举。

“我回来是为了完成一项任务，履行一项职责，”她在周四返回后的首次新闻发布会上说。

2025 年诺贝尔和平奖得主感谢美国政府领导这个南美国家的民主过渡进程，并表示国务卿马可·卢比奥已经概述了一系列事件，其中包括在 2027 年举行总统选举。

“这体现了国家应对紧迫局势的责任感。同时，根据最近几天的发展情况，也清楚地表明民主转型是不可逆转的，”她说道。

美国和委内瑞拉政府均未确定新选举日期。

马查多周日返回委内瑞拉，受到大批支持者的欢呼，她说所有支持者都要求委内瑞拉获得自由。“我只听到一个词，同一个词：自由，”她周四说道。

马查多于12月前往挪威领取诺贝尔和平奖，她因在挪威促进民主权利而获此殊荣。

在她离开一个月后，美国于 1 月 3 日发动军事行动，推翻并抓获了她的竞争对手、强人领导人尼古拉斯·马杜罗。

“多亏了美国政府的行动，马杜罗正在接受审判，自由的闸门已经打开，”马查多周四表示。

马杜罗下台后几天内，华盛顿就开始与他的继任者、代理总统德尔西·罗德里格斯合作，推行政治改革，引导委内瑞拉走向民主转型。迄今为止，罗德里格斯几乎满足了美国的所有要求，包括释放数百名政治犯、允许部分流亡者回国，以及简化美国公司在委内瑞拉的投资流程。

美国还斡旋了现任政府与几位知名反对派人士（如迪诺拉·菲格拉）之间的和解谈判。

在马查多发表讲话前不久，罗德里格斯也向全国发表了讲话。

她没有直接回应马查多的回归，但在录制的视频信息中对批评者说：“对于那些与我意见相左的人，我并不要求你们改变看法。我要求你们以事实为依据来判断。少争吵，多解决问题。”

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关于这个南美国家的选举日程——自马杜罗上台以来一直是一个悬而未决的问题——罗德里格斯重申，“将会举行选举，这是我们宪法所规定的。”

她呼吁：“选举不应该成为一个问题，也不应该让我们回到任何人都不想再经历的对抗时代。”

她还宣布将继续推进改革，包括承诺任何人不得在没有司法逮捕令的情况下被拘留，这是人权组织长期以来一直提出的要求。

罗德里格斯还透露，政府正在评估是否将目前由政府持有的非必要资产出售给私营部门或原所有者。这位代理总统表示，这一过程“已经进展顺利。私有财产是受宪法保障的受保护权利。”

尽管与反对派领导人马查多关系友好，但华盛顿迄今为止仍将马查多排除在政治过渡进程之外。

今年一月，马查多将她的诺贝尔奖赠予美国总统唐纳德·特朗普，希望此举能促使他支持她竞选委内瑞拉下一任领导人。

特朗普接受了这份礼物，但并未公开支持她。他此前曾称她是一位“非常好的女人”，但声称她“在国内缺乏支持和尊重”，不足以领导这个国家。

尽管如此，马查多仍然继续支持特朗普政府，同时谴责与其合作的委内瑞拉代理政府，她认为该政府是马杜罗镇压政权的延续。

在流亡的 10 个月里，马查多多次誓言要回国，并暗示如果举行选举，她将竞选总统。

过去几个月里，她曾多次尝试重新进入委内瑞拉，但均未成功。

美国国务卿马可·卢比奥周一表示，美国已与委内瑞拉临时当局就马查多回国一事进行了交谈，并声称任何阻碍她抵达的“障碍”都“与我们无关”。