The Venezuelan opposition coalition has reaffirmed its determination to appoint exiled Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Colina Machado as its leader.
On Sunday, members of the opposition United Democratic Platform (PUD) agreed to “recognize and support the leadership of Maria Colina Machado” at a meeting in Caracas.
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The coalition also reiterated its call for free elections in Venezuela, which has had a series of contested presidential elections in 2024 and 2018.
Sunday’s statement included 14 proposals for a democratic transition, including freedom for political parties, the release of all political prisoners and the safe return of exiles.
The announcement also increases pressure on authorities to allow Machado to return. She has been living in exile since leaving Venezuela last December to receive the Nobel Prize.
“The will of the Venezuelan people must once again control the destiny of our country,” former opposition presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez wrote on social media in support of the proposal.
“We will not accept political prisoners, persecution, or a governing power that ignores the mandate of the people. Living freely under a true constitutional order is the legitimate demand of our society.”
Election not set
Venezuela has not yet announced a new presidential vote date. Since January 3, the country has been led by interim President Delcy Rodriguez of the long-ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV).
PSUV leaders are accused of human rights abuses against political dissidents, including arbitrary arrest, imprisonment, and torture.
Still, the PSUV continues to maintain power with support from the White House even after the US launched a military operation to kidnap and imprison former President Nicolás Maduro.
US President Donald Trump supports Rodriguez’s leadership, even though he was Maduro’s vice president.
The regime has maintained an active role in Venezuela, controlling oil resources and pressuring the Rodriguez government for reforms.
But critics say Trump has been reluctant to push for Rodriguez’s re-election bid, opting for a three-phase plan that first focuses on stabilizing the country and recovering the economy before pursuing a political transition.
Meanwhile, Machado told the Financial Times that he hopes Venezuela will hold elections by July next year.
“The U.S. government and the Venezuelan people all agree that the only way to make this situation sustainable and a real victory is to transform Venezuela into a stable democracy,” she told the newspaper earlier this month.
thwarted return
According to Machado’s party Vente Venezuela, Venezuelan authorities have thwarted Machado’s repeated attempts to return home.
Machado also reportedly tried to petition the Trump administration for help re-entering Venezuela.
Separately, she presented President Trump with the Nobel Peace Prize during a visit to Washington, D.C., in January. However, media reports suggest friction between the Trump administration and Machado.
In interviews with Reuters and Axios, anonymous U.S. officials expressed frustration with repeated efforts by opposition leaders to return home, especially after Venezuela’s two deadly earthquakes last July.
Axios reported that one official called Machado’s push “political opportunism.”
However, Machado remains one of the most popular figures in Venezuela’s opposition.
In October 2023, Machado won the opposition coalition’s presidential primary, but in January 2024, a Venezuelan court blocked her from running in the next election.
The court reportedly upheld a 15-year ban on her holding public office because of her support for U.S. sanctions against the Maduro regime.
Gonzalez eventually replaced Machado as the opposition candidate in the 2024 election campaign. Despite widespread criticism that the vote did not meet democratic standards, Maduro declared victory for a third term as Venezuelan president that election cycle.
Opposition parties released vote tallies that appeared to show Gonzalez had won.
The United States recognized Mr. Gonzalez as the country’s rightful next president and denied the legitimacy of Mr. Maduro’s election claims.
Machado was removed from Congress in 2014 for his activities against the Venezuelan government.
A third round of talks between the Rodriguez government and rebel groups began this month in Venezuela.
But instead of bringing Machado into the negotiations, the opposition-led parliament that was dissolved under Maduro in 2015 also took part.
Still, the U.S. State Department praised the talks in a statement this month for helping the Venezuelan government reform.
“Political reconciliation talks between Venezuela’s interim government and members of the 2015 National Assembly have produced concrete reforms in civil liberties and political rights, laying the groundwork for credible elections and a democratic transition,” the State Department said.
