Machado Returns to Caracas and Calls for Elections by Next July

María Corina Machado has returned to Venezuela and is in Caracas, the capital, where she has called for presidential elections to be held next year, by next July, according to The New York Times.

Machado came back on Sunday, October 25, after nearly a year away, according to Reuters. The Associated Press reported that she reappeared in the country that day for the first time since December.

Machado is a conservative former lawmaker and a longtime opponent of Venezuela's ruling Socialist Party. She is also a Nobel Prize winner. She has said she is interested in running for president, the country's top elected office.

She said her return was organized by her own team, not by any government, according to the Times report.

Machado has also described a plan for a democratic transition in Venezuela. In a statement published by Vente Venezuela, her political movement, she said the plan has three phases, that it is being carried out, and that it includes presidential elections in 2027.

Her timetable differs from the one set out by U.S. President Donald Trump. In September, Trump said it was too soon to consider democratic elections in Venezuela, according to Reuters. In a later report, the Times said Trump had praised Ms. Rodríguez and said Venezuela was not ready for elections.