Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, earning global recognition for her enduring struggle for democracy under President Nicolás Maduro’s repressive regime.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the decision on Friday, praising Machado for “keeping the flame of democracy burning amidst a growing darkness.”
The honour marks a powerful endorsement of Venezuela’s pro-democracy movement, which has faced years of persecution, electoral manipulation, and violent crackdowns under Maduro’s rule.
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Machado remains in hiding in Venezuela after what international observers described as a fraudulent election last year that extended Maduro’s authoritarian grip on power.
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In its citation, the Nobel Committee said the award recognised Machado’s “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela, and for a struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
Her victory sends a symbolic message to the world’s autocratic leaders, reinforcing that peaceful resistance and civic courage can still shape the global democratic landscape.
The announcement also disappointed former US President Donald Trump, who had claimed he was deserving of the award for mediating “eight wars,” including his efforts toward an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement.
Machado, a former legislator and one of the most outspoken critics of the Venezuelan government, has long been targeted by authorities through intimidation, travel bans, and disqualification from elections.
Despite relentless state harassment, she has continued to rally Venezuelans and the international community for a democratic transition, insisting that the people’s will cannot be silenced by fear or force.
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Observers say the Nobel Committee’s choice places renewed international pressure on Maduro’s administration, which continues to face sanctions, economic collapse, and growing isolation.
Global human rights organisations have hailed Machado’s win as both a moral victory for Venezuela’s oppressed citizens and a warning to regimes that thrive on suppressing dissent.
The 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, valued at 11 million Swedish kronor, will be formally presented at a ceremony in Oslo later this year.
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