Oslo/Caracas: María Corina Machado, a Venezuelan politician, has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her decades-long fight for democracy and civil liberties in the Latin American country. The Prize was announced on Friday, October 10, by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which hailed her as “one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times.”
The Committee said Machado was being recognised as “the leader of the democracy movement in Venezuela” and for her unwavering commitment to “a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
Once among Latin America’s most stable democracies, Venezuela’s institutions began to crumble after Hugo Chávez came to power in 1999, followed by Nicolás Maduro in 2013. Over the years, the government has consolidated power through a rewritten constitution, suppression of dissent, and tightly controlled elections. The 2024 presidential polls, which Maduro claimed to have won, were widely denounced as rigged and held amid the disqualification and persecution of opposition candidates, including Machado.
Born in Caracas in 1967, Machado hails from an influential family and studied industrial engineering and finance before turning to social activism. In 1992, she founded the Atenea Foundation for street children, and a decade later, she co-founded Súmate, a citizens’ group that monitors elections and promotes civic participation. Súmate’s campaign for a 2004 recall referendum against Chávez made her a national figure but also led to treason charges after she alleged large-scale voter fraud.
Despite repeated intimidation, bans, and threats, Machado remained committed to non-violent activism, insisting on “ballots over bullets.” Her resilience and refusal to flee the country have made her a symbol of defiance against authoritarianism. Over the past decade, she has emerged as the unifying force behind Venezuela’s fragmented opposition.
Though barred from contesting in 2024, Machado led the opposition’s campaign that energised millions across the country. The Nobel Committee noted that citizens inspired by her leadership “held watch over polling stations and safeguarded the vote counts despite the threat of harassment, arrest, and torture.”
Under Maduro’s rule, Venezuela has suffered one of the world’s worst economic collapses outside wartime, with millions facing poverty and mass migration. Yet, Machado’s movement, rooted in peaceful resistance, continues to offer hope to Venezuelans yearning for change.
In a brief statement following the Nobel announcement, Machado said the honour belonged to “all Venezuelans striving for freedom, peace, and the restoration of democracy.”
The Nobel Peace Prize ceremony will take place in Oslo this December, where Machado is expected to be represented if political conditions prevent her travel. This marks the first time in history that a Venezuelan citizen has received the Nobel Peace Prize.