Democrats seize on Machado’s return to push for Venezuela elections

Democratic lawmakers urged the Venezuelan government to hold elections following opposition leader María Corina Machado’s recent return to the country after nearly a year in exile.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called Machado’s return to Venezuela “welcome news” in a statement shared to social platform X Monday.

“This is an encouraging step forward,” Shaheen said. “The Trump Administration and the Delcy Rodríguez regime must now ensure her safety and swiftly advance toward elections and a democratic transition.” 

Machado, who announced her return Sunday, has pushed for the country to hold elections next year and indicated she would run for the country’s top office. She leads the center-right Vente Venezuela party, countering the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela — which has held onto power for almost three decades.

“I will be president when the time comes. But it doesn’t matter. That should be decided in elections by the Venezuelan people,” she said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” in February. 

President Trump backed Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, a member of the ruling party, to lead the country after his administration captured leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife earlier........

© The Hill