Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado returns to Venezuela from exile, pressing for democratic elections and criticising a controversial US oil deal with Caracas.
Published On 30 Oct 2026
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has thanked the administration of US President Donald Trump for opening the “floodgate to freedom” following the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro in January.
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate on Thursday also called for national elections to be held in Venezuela next year, marking her first public remarks since returning from more than 10 months in exile.
“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, specifically naming President Trump, his administration, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
She noted that 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.”
Machado has previously praised Trump, presenting the president with her Nobel medal—a prize he feverishly coveted for himself in 2025.
A longtime activist, Machado fled Venezuela for Oslo in December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize. On Thursday, she stated that she had returned home to “mobilise society.” US special forces veterans with an organization called Grey Bull Rescue helped Machado escape by boat after she spent a year in hiding from Maduro’s regime.
Since Maduro’s abduction in January, the country has been governed by his former Vice President, Delcy Rodriguez.
Upon her return to Venezuela on Sunday, Machado was greeted by cheering supporters as she traveled in her motorcade. Rodriguez voiced clear distaste for the fanfare.
“The show could have been avoided—the airports are right here,” she stated on state television.
When asked about a potential meeting with Rodriguez, the opposition leader stated that she had not received any message from either the interim leader or Washington.
Shortly before Machado’s statements on Thursday, Rodriguez assured the nation that elections would be held in Venezuela “with the world as witness,” but did not specify a date.
Her return comes just weeks after a controversial US oil deal was announced, which will see Venezuela hand over 20 percent of its vast oil reserves.
“This agreement does not reflect the levels of transparency that Venezuelan society demands,” Machado stated, criticising the deal.
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