Announced on X

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado announced on Sunday that she had returned to Venezuela, nearly a year after leaving the country to receive the Nobel peace prize. Machado broke the news at Sunday lunchtime on X, writing: "I'm here. With you."

González confirms her arrival

Edmundo González, her close ally who is in exile, confirmed her arrival in a social media post, saying: "Venezuela! I am thrilled to announce to you that our leader, my dear María Corina, is on Venezuelan soil."

González called it a very important day for Venezuelans, saying their sovereign voice returns with her to lead and guide the process. He added that he too would soon return.

Where she appeared

Footage shared on social media pointed to her whereabouts:

• She was seen in Barquisimeto, the capital of Lara state, about 220 miles west of Caracas.
• Images showed her surrounded by supporters holding mobile phones.
• The setting was a church called the Sanctuary of the Divine Shepherdess.

It was not immediately clear how Machado, who is 59, managed to re-enter the country.

Political backdrop

The Trump administration had reportedly opposed Machado's return, viewing her presence as a complication for its relationship with interim president Delcy Rodríguez. Machado and Rodríguez are arch political rivals. After Maduro was seized in January, many expected Trump to back Machado to take power; he instead embraced Rodríguez, Maduro's former vice-president, who now governs a country widely seen as a US protectorate.

Machado slipped out of Venezuela last December, a few weeks before Maduro's capture, and had reportedly made more than half a dozen failed attempts to return in recent months, including after the June earthquake on the northern coast. Her movement is widely believed to have beaten Maduro in the 2024 presidential election, though he refused to hand over power.