A staunch protagonist of democracy, Machado won an autarkic statesmanlike superior predetermination - held extracurricular the Maduro government's authoritative predetermination authorization - successful 2023, earning much than 90% of the vote.
Despite winning the primary, Maduro's authorities barred Machado from moving for office, accusing her of fraud and taxation violations. Machado denied the allegations, calling them politically motivated. She spent her last days successful the state hiding successful safehouses earlier her fleeing to Norway to judge the Nobel Prize.
In the 2024 election, Machado's state González ran successful her spot against Maduro.
The electoral authority, which is intimately aligned with the government, declared Maduro the victor without making elaborate voting tallies public.
The absorption argued that González won the election, not Maduro, uploading copies of the voting tallies arsenic evidence.
Maduro was removed from the state by US forces successful January, and is presently jailed successful New York wherever helium faces drugs, weapons and torture charges. He has pleaded not guilty.
A spokesperson for Machado called her instrumentality "a large measurement toward a antiauthoritarian modulation and free, fair, and verifiable statesmanlike elections successful the adjacent future".
"We convey President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the US Government, Congress, and allied governments for their continued enactment and support," her spokesperson, David Smolansky, added.
Speaking to reporters connected Sunday, Trump said, "I don't cognize thing about" her return, and added that helium hoped she was "safe".
"I deliberation she's a precise bully woman. She gave maine her Nobel Prize, truthful however tin I accidental thing else? And I anticipation she's safe," helium said.
In January, Machado visited the White House and talented her Nobel prize grant to Trump. The committee that issues the prize had said "it cannot beryllium revoked, shared, oregon transferred to others".
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised his country's relation successful securing her instrumentality done governmental reconciliation talks.
"The conditions allowing for the harmless instrumentality of Ms Machado to Venezuela is the nonstop effect of the US supported reconciliation talks which has already seen hundreds of governmental prisoners freed and hundreds of governmental absorption figures instrumentality from exile," helium posted connected X.
He added: "We expect each governmental actors to enactment these talks which correspond the champion accidental Venezuela has had successful 30 years to peacefully execute not conscionable a escaped and just predetermination but an enduring democracy."
English (US)·