Venezuela’s María Corina Machado Returns Home After Nearly Year Abroad

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado returned home Sunday after nearly a year abroad, stepping back into a political landscape reshaped by the U.S. ouster of Nicolás Maduro.

“I’m here. With you all,” Machado wrote on social media, announcing her return for the first time since December. Venezuela remains under the leadership of acting President Delcy Rodríguez, a longtime Maduro ally supported by the Trump administration, and no presidential election has been scheduled.

When reporters asked President Donald Trump about Machado’s return in Port Huron, Michigan, he said he was unaware of the development but expressed hope that she was safe.

“I don’t know anything about it, but I think she’s a very nice woman,” Trump said. “She gave me her Nobel Prize. So how can I say anything else? And I hope she’s safe. She’s a very nice woman. But we’re doing really well in Venezuela.”

Machado, who received the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her peaceful opposition to Maduro’s government, did not reveal where she was staying or explain how she had re-entered the country.

Edmundo González, a fellow opposition leader who ran for president in 2024 after Machado was barred from the race, confirmed her arrival online and said he would join her “very soon.”

“Today is a very important day for Venezuelans. Our sovereign voice returns with her to lead and guide this process!” González wrote on X. “You know it, this is until the end.”

Machado’s homecoming came nearly 10 months after U.S. forces captured Maduro in January, ending the longtime leader’s rule.

Rodríguez, Maduro’s former vice president, has continued to govern with the Trump administration’s backing, even after exceeding the period for which she was initially authorized to serve as acting president.

Trump has repeatedly highlighted his administration’s relationship with Rodríguez, pointing to agreements involving Venezuelan oil production and other business projects with U.S. companies.

In September, Trump said it was too early to discuss democratic elections in Venezuela because U.S. officials were focused on stabilizing the economy. Machado and her allies have continued to demand an election date, arguing that democratic rule is crucial to the country’s long-term stability.

Machado’s return could further complicate relations among Venezuela’s opposition, the interim government and Washington. Reuters reported in June that U.S. officials had urged her to postpone her return.

Machado spent much of 2025 in hiding after being briefly detained following an opposition protest in January. She later left Venezuela secretly and resurfaced in Norway in December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize.

Meanwhile, a faction of Venezuela’s opposition and Rodríguez’s government held another round of talks this month. The discussions focused on possible reforms to the Supreme Court and electoral authorities ahead of eventual elections, Reuters reported.

Machado’s political movement has not participated in those negotiations.