María Corina Machado affirms that Venezuela could hold transparent elections in less than a year
The opposition leader clarified that she has not yet discussed a specific schedule with President Donald Trump.
María Corina Machado
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado affirmed that Venezuela could organize new democratic elections within nine to ten months, provided that a transparent electoral process with manual voting is initiated. However, Machado clarified that she has not yet discussed a specific timetable with U.S. President Donald Trump.
The statements were made during an interview with journalist Dasha Burns for POLITICO, where Machado stressed that the timetable depends directly on the moment when the electoral mechanism is activated. She assured that the country has internal conditions that would allow it to move forward quickly if there is political will.
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Why Machado believes that the process can be faster
The opposition leader maintained that Venezuela differs from other reconstruction processes led by the United States, such as those of Iraq and Afghanistan, which took years to stabilize. According to Machado, her country has elements that would allow a more agile transition.
She affirmed that there is an ingrained democratic culture, an organized society, a leadership with popular support and armed forces that support a transition to democracy, factors that, in her opinion, reduce the time needed to hold legitimate elections.
Machado also pointed out that Venezuelans already participated in recent electoral processes under conditions that she described as "very difficult," which, according to her, shows that the population is willing to support truly democratic elections.
"If we were able to do that under such extreme conditions, imagine now, when we have the support of the United States government, when people feel that we are not alone," she said.
Recent electoral situation
Venezuela held presidential elections in 2024, which the Nicolas Maduro regime claimed to have won, followed by parliamentary elections in 2025. Independent observers questioned those elections and argued that they were neither free nor fair.
Congressional pressures and White House stance
Trump, however, has suggested that the United States could maintain oversight of the country for years, especially with the goal of controlling the development of infrastructure aimed at oil exploitation. In previous statements, he affirmed that "only time will tell" how long such supervision will last.
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