Venezuelan opposition leader Machado returns to Venezuela

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado returned to Venezuela on Sunday after nearly a year abroad, saying she was back to stand with her supporters as she pushes for free and fair elections.

“I’m here. With you all,” Machado wrote on social media.

Machado’s team shared images of her at a church in Lara state in western Venezuela. She did not disclose details about how she returned or provide further information about her location.

Machado left Venezuela in late 2025 to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway after spending more than a year largely in hiding. The government under former President Nicolas Maduro had restricted her movements, and she had made several unsuccessful attempts to return in recent months.

Machado has called for a date to be set for free and fair presidential elections, but no election date has been announced.