Venezuelan Opposition Leader María Corina Machado Returns From Exile
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate plans to press Venezuela's interim government to schedule new presidential elections following the capture of Nicolás Maduro.
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado returned to the country on Sunday, Oct. 25, ending more than 10 months in exile. Machado, the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, traveled across western Venezuela before reaching Caracas that night.
She first appeared Sunday afternoon at the Church of Santa Rosa in Barquisimeto, the capital of western Lara state. Two Venezuelan exiles said she entered the country by land from Colombia, though Colombian authorities did not immediately confirm the account.
Departing Barquisimeto, Machado traveled eastward through Yaracuy state and Guacara in a motorcade toward Caracas. The journey took roughly eight hours because road congestion and crowds slowed her vehicle.
Machado arrived in Caracas on Sunday night. Reporters estimated that tens of thousands of people lined the capital's entryway with flags, rosaries, and cellphone lights to welcome her.
Speaking from her car sunroof, Machado said her return aimed to reunite families, free political prisoners, and achieve Venezuelan freedom. She told supporters that the Venezuelan people were giving lessons to the world.
Her senior adviser, David Smolansky, called her return a major step toward a peaceful democratic transition. He said her goal is to advance a process leading to free, fair, and verifiable presidential elections.
Exiled opposition diplomat Edmundo González Urrutia said on social media that he intends to return to Venezuela very soon. González ran as the coalition candidate in 2024 after authorities barred Machado from the race.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio credited U.S.-backed reconciliation talks with enabling her safe return. Rubio said the talks freed hundreds of political prisoners and allowed exiles to return. He previously stated that Venezuela must achieve economic stabilization and institutional rebuilding before holding fresh elections.
When questioned by reporters on Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he did not know anything about her return. Trump referred to Machado as a very nice woman. The Trump administration backs the current interim authority in Caracas.
Machado went into hiding for 11 months following crackdowns after the disputed July 2024 election. She left secretly in December 2025 to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway. Her team said she attempted to re-enter the country at least seven times by boat and regional flights before Sunday.
U.S. military forces deposed and captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January 2026. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez took power as interim leader for a 90-day transitional period, which has since lapsed. Rodríguez told the United Nations General Assembly in September that Venezuelans would determine the timing of the next election.
Machado and her coalition plan to use her presence in Caracas to demand a date for free and verifiable elections. Her party, Vente Venezuela, demands that national presidential elections be scheduled for 2027 and that Machado be fully certified to run.
