Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado announced plans to return to Venezuela after winning the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. The 58-year-old politician, who was barred from participating in the 2024 presidential election, declared that one of her objectives will be to prepare for what she called a "new and gigantic electoral victory."

Machado's announcement comes amid Venezuela's political chaos following the capture of former President Nicolás Maduro in a U.S. military operation in January. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez has warned that Machado "will have to answer" if she returns to the country. The opposition claims it had evidence that Edmundo González actually won the July 2024 election, not Maduro.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has emphasized that Venezuela's transition must follow phases of stabilization, economic recovery, and political transition, without indicating elections could happen soon. Machado, a key opposition figure, controversially presented her Nobel medal to U.S. President Donald Trump after Maduro's removal. She now faces charges in U.S. courts related to drug trafficking, though she has pleaded not guilty.