WASHINGTON / CARACAS — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has secretly returned to her home country, officials and reports confirmed on February 25, 2026.

Machado announced her return via social media, declaring, "I am here. With you," though she did not disclose her specific location or method of entry. Edmundo González, who ran in the 2024 presidential election under Machado’s backing, confirmed her return from his exile in Spain via X (formerly Twitter) and hinted that he would join her "very soon."

Setting the Stage for New Elections

Machado’s return brings renewed attention to Venezuela's political future as the nation approaches its tenth month under a transitional government following the ouster of former President Nicolás Maduro. Currently, the country is led by interim President Delcy Rodríguez, the former vice president under the Maduro regime.

Machado, who holds the top spot in public opinion polls for the presidency, had been living in exile since traveling abroad last December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize. She was recently staying in Panama, and in a Financial Times interview on February 9, she insisted that presidential elections must be held by July of next year at the latest.

However, the Associated Press reported that Rodríguez has already exceeded the legal time frame permitted to serve as acting president following Maduro’s arrest and detention by U.S. forces, yet a formal election schedule has still not been established.

U.S. Involvement and Oil Agreements

In September, U.S. President Donald Trump remarked that Venezuela was "not yet ready to hold elections"—a stance shared by Rodríguez, who has shifted toward a pro-U.S. line while leading the interim administration. Amid these delays, Washington and Caracas finalized an agreement granting the United States access to one-fifth of Venezuela's massive oil reserves.

Speaking to reporters outside the White House on his way to Michigan, President Trump addressed Machado’s return, stating:

"She gave me her Nobel Prize. What else can I say? I hope she’s safe. She’s a very nice woman. But we are doing really well in Venezuela."
In a prior interview with Fox News, Trump asserted that the U.S. is "completely running Venezuela," adding, "Every single week we are taking out millions of barrels of oil."

Diplomatic Backing and Tensions

The Trump administration stated that it paved the way for Machado’s return through negotiations with the Venezuelan interim government. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on X that the conditions allowing Machado's safe return were "the direct result of a reconciliation agreement supported by the United States."

Rubio added that the arrangement has already led to the release of hundreds of political prisoners and the repatriation of hundreds of exiled opposition politicians. While Rubio has previously emphasized that Venezuela must stabilize its economy and rebuild state institutions—including the courts and the electoral council—before holding elections, he acknowledged earlier this month that Machado "has every right to enter her country whenever she wants to go back."

According to Reuters, Machado had previously attempted to return on seven separate occasions without success. Observers noted that Washington’s lukewarm enthusiasm for an early return—with U.S. officials repeatedly asking her to delay her schedule—may have contributed to those past setbacks.

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