politics • Jan. 16, 2026

Venezuelan Opposition Leader María Corina Machado Seeks U.S. Backing with Nobel Medal Gesture

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado presents her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Trump in hopes of securing U.S. support for Venezuela's future. Despite Trump’s backing of Delcy Rodríguez, Machado remains determined to lead post-Maduro Venezuela

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado stated that she delivered her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday, despite his questioning of her credibility to assume leadership in her country following the United States' removal of then-President Nicolás Maduro. Machado, an ardent critic of Venezuela’s erstwhile strongman Nicolás Maduro, received the award last year in recognition of her efforts to promote greater democracy. Now she was leaving the medal at the White House, hoping that the gesture might secure her something far more significant: U.S.

support in shaping Venezuela’s post-Maduro future. “I presented the president of the United States the medal, the Nobel Peace Prize,” Machado informed reporters after departing the White House and proceeding to Capitol Hill. She stated that she had done so “as a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom.

Trump later verified on social media that Machado had left the medal for him to retain, and he expressed that it was an honor to meet her. “She is a wonderful woman who has been through so much. María presented me with her Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done,” Trump stated in his post.

“Such a wonderful gesture of mutual respect. Thank you María!” The Nobel Peace Center in Oslo promptly reaffirmed that the medals are non-transferable and cannot be shared. “A medal can change owners, but the title of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate cannot,”, the committee stated on X.

This moment is a snapshot of the fight that is still going on in Venezuela. María Corina Machado is asking the U.S. to help her by giving her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Donald Trump.

What does she want? That this act might help her get a better grip on shaping Venezuela's future. Trump praised Machado's bravery, but now he has backed Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro's former deputy, which makes Machado's position unclear. She is very determined because she is excited about the meeting, but it's not clear if it will lead to real support for her leadership.

This change is very important because it shows the bigger fight for power in Venezuela and how outside forces, especially the U.S., could change the country's future. Machado, in the meantime, expressed an optimistic perspective regarding her encounter, describing it as “historic” and “extraordinary.” She stated that the Trump administration recognized the importance of rebuilding institutions, safeguarding human rights and free expression, and establishing a new, genuine electoral process to motivate Venezuelans to repatriate. The Nobel Institute has stated that Machado was unable to present her award to Trump, an accolade he has long desired.

Even if the gesture is merely symbolic, it was remarkable considering that Trump has effectively marginalized Machado, who has long been the prominent figure of resistance in Venezuela. He has indicated his readiness to collaborate with Acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro’s deputy. She also affirmed that Venezuela already has a president-elect: Edmundo González, the opposition candidate whom the United States previously recognized following the country's contested 2024 election.

Government-appointed electoral authorities declared Maduro the victor, enabling him to retain power until his sudden apprehension by U.S. special forces. However, at that time, opposition leaders, along with the United States and international watchdog organizations, expressed concerns regarding allegations of misconduct.

However, despite Washington's prior backing of Machado and González, Trump did not endorse the opposition following Maduro's arrest. Instead, he endorsed Rodriguez—a decision that surprised many opponents of Maduro. Despite Machado’s optimistic tone, it remains uncertain whether she obtained anything beyond a photo opportunity and an official gift bag imprinted with Trump’s signature.

The Trump administration has repeatedly expressed the view that Rodriguez is a dependable and pragmatic selection with whom the United States can effectively collaborate. And on Thursday, as their meeting commenced, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that Trump’s evaluation of Machado remained unchanged. “I know the president was looking forward to this meeting, and he was expecting it to be a good and positive discussion with Ms.

Machado, who is really a remarkable and brave voice for many of the people of Venezuela,” Leavitt stated. However, she stated that Trump maintains his prior assertion that Machado does not possess the requisite support to govern Venezuela. “At this moment in time, his opinion on that matter has not changed,” she stated.

Opposition Movement and Maduro’s Human Rights Violations, Machado is still a well-known leader in Venezuela's opposition movement, which has been through violence and repression under Maduro's presidency. Human rights groups say that Maduro has systematically silenced dissent and arrested opposition leaders. The human rights group Foro Penal said on January 11 that there were 804 political prisoners in Venezuela.

However, some estimates say that the number could be in the thousands. Machado used to be a member of Venezuela's National Assembly, but Maduro's regime removed her because she was allegedly plotting against the presidency. She was seen as a strong candidate for the presidential election in 2024, and in the opposition primary in October 2023, she got more than 92% of the votes.

But in January 2024, she was once again barred from entering office. In the end, veteran ambassador Edmundo Gonzalez ran for the opposition coalition. After the elections closed in July 2024, the government didn't give the usual thorough breakdown of the vote counts.

This led to a lot of protests about a lack of openness. The opposition got election results that showed Gonzalez had won by a wide margin, which made the anger even worse. The Trump Administration's Rejection of Machado, Rodriguez, however, stated that she intends to review Venezuela’s hydrocarbon law to facilitate increased foreign investment.

Renata Segura, the director of the Latin America and Caribbean program at the nonprofit International Crisis Group, informed Al Jazeera that Rodriguez and her government have persistently upheld the position that Maduro is the legitimate leader of Venezuela. We should not forget that Rodriguez and many other members of the government in Caracas have been very adamant about the fact that the intervention against Maduro was illegitimate. They’ve actually demanded that he be liberated.

Segura stated, ro was illegitimate. They’ve actually demanded that he be liberated,” Segura stated. “So they haven’t done a 180-degree shift in the tone of their declarations.

But it’s not like they have a lot of maneuvering room. So they are really trying to appease Trump at this moment. Nevertheless, Trump has consistently dismissed Machado’s potential as a successor to Maduro or Rodriguez, stating on January 3 that she “doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country.

Segura considers the Trump administration's decision to exclude Machado as the leader of Venezuela to be comprehensible, citing concerns for stability. However, she remarked that Machado is the unequivocal head of the opposition, and consequently, her coalition must be incorporated into the country's government going forward. It would be very illegitimate if we just had a conversation between the regime of Chavismo, now without Maduro, and the Trump administration, without those people that really represent the Venezuelan people’s feelings, Segura stated..