Roaming across the nation draped in white, the rosary beads around her neck swinging to her rhythm, María Corina Machado offers a shoulder for weeping women and a symbol of salvation to pleading men. After her personal security was revoked by the governing authorities, she now traverses the unprotected boulevards.
She ascends onto the bonnet of her weather-beaten vehicle, which acts as her temporary stage, as her supporters scramble to come in contact with her. One enthusiast hands over a hand-sketched portrait of her, framed only by the Venezuelan flag and Jesus Christ’s divine embrace.
A cry emerges from the crowd, “María, help us!”
At 56, Machado has instilled terror in Venezuela’s ruling elite by transforming into the latest opposition figurehead. In a brief span of months, she moved from the periphery to spotlight, forming a potent social movement that can mobilise thousands towards protest and potentially millions to vote.
While not a presidential candidate herself, she is the guiding spirit behind the primary opposition contender, a diplomat of modest fame named Edmundo González.
Machado’s ability to spark public mobilisation follows a prolonged period of political disinterest in Venezuela. Here, President Nicolás Maduro’s regime has quelled demonstrations, detained dissidents, and consequently triggered a massive emigration wave.
An attempt spearheaded by the Trump administration to place a young legislator, Juan Guaidó, as the acting president fell short, leading to Guaidó’s flight to the US last year.
Now, Machado, a former national assembly member and conservative, once shunned by her peers, has not only harnessed the divided Venezuelan opposition but has also fascinated a considerable chunk of voters with her promises of comprehensive governmental reform.
In an echo of the past, even her previous detractors admit that her movement bears a significant resemblance to the country’s most powerful initiative since the one established by Hugo Chávez, Maduro’s guide and the architect of Venezuela’s quarter-century-old socialist plan.
“The standout distinction is that ‘Chavismo’ rallied behind a socialist doctrine as a blueprint for the nation,” renowned former communications minister for Chávez, Andrés Izarra, commented. On the contrary, he continued, “‘Maria Corina’s campaign is motivated by the public’s dissatisfaction with Madurism’”. Izarra, post his tenure as minister, developed into a critic of the government, necessitating his self-exile.
The national economy of Venezuela has experienced an unprecedented downturn during Maduro’s reign – a collapse unmatched in peacetime over the past half-century, according to economic experts. Despite a slight rebound in recent times, the population continues to struggle, with millions unable to procure essential medication or adequate sustenance.
Public sentiment suggests a mass exodus if Maduro’s reign persists, potentially initiating weeks prior to the American presidential election.
A rally in Guanare, a city situated six hours west of Caracas, witnessed a young woman assert, “For our children’s future!”. Machado was there amidst a turbulent campaign which saw several team members incarcerated by the authorities. In order to evade arrest, the opposition figurehead made an early exit from Caracas. Her vehicle still carried the scars of an encounter with hostile Maduro enthusiasts who had resorted to pelting rocks.
Despite the tumult, Machado held steadfast, making an appearance in Guanare by afternoon, poised atop her car adorned with pearl earrings, hair neatly tied back.
The escalating cheers of the crowd surrounded her. A barefoot man inquired as to how he could assist in her defence. Addressing the crowd through a megaphone, Machado’s ambitions were barely discernible as she pledged to rejuvenate the economy and reunite the emigrated youth with their homeland.
A test of her public approval forthcoming – a presidential election due on Sunday which could signal the cessation of a quarter-century of socialist governance.
Ever since assuming power in 2013, Maduro has staged elections in an attempt to validate his administration. However, it has frequently been suggested that he manipulates the system by excluding formidable contenders or by concocting results.
Earlier this year, a judgement by a supreme court disqualified Machado from the ballot. Following this, however, the administration did offer leeway for her coalition to endorse an alternative candidate, hence leading to the nomination of González. In the event of the opposition’s victory, the presidency would be awarded to González (age 74). Nevertheless, it is universally recognised, spanning from Caracas to Washington, that Machado is the propelling factor behind this political endeavour.
In a combined press event, it was not declared what position Machado might occupy within a González-led government. Nonetheless, Machado expressed her optimism about the election outcome, stating that they had not been in such an advantageous position in the past twenty-five years.
With the elections approaching, the country is in a state of anticipation. The opposition is receiving extensive public support, shown by recent polls. However, Maduro appears reluctant to relinquish power. Only the previous week, at a political rally, he ominously declared that should he not secure victory, Venezuela would descend into chaos and civil war.
Machado, the eldest of four girls belonging to an influential iron industry family, received an education from a respected Catholic girls’ school in Caracas and a boarding school in Wellesley, Massachusetts. In an interview conducted in 2005 by the New York Times, she described her upbringings as sheltered from the harsh realities of real life.
Beginning her career as an engineer, she subsequently accepted a role in the family’s business, Sivensa. Later, she worked with her mother in a facility for displaced children.
In 2002, Machado launched her political activism journey, helping establish a voters rights organisation, Súmate. She was instrumental in an ultimately unsuccessful bid to depose Chávez. Receiving financial patronage from the US government, Machado became a celebrated figure in Washington, and simultaneously one of Chávez’s most despised enemies.
Machado’s distaste was not limited to the government. She was at times considered overly confrontational, exceptionally conservative, and too much of an “upper-class snoot” by her fellow opponents to lead their collective movement.
Machado has voiced admiration for iconic conservative figure, Margaret Thatcher, for her steadfastness and commitment to a free market. Machado herself has consistently backed the privatisation of PDVSA, Venezuela’s governmental oil firm, a stand that other anti-government figures argue would unfairly benefit an elite few.
While serving as a lawmaker in 2012, Machado publicly confronted Chávez during a televised debate, accusing him of stealing from ordinary Venezuelans through acts of expropriation.
Chávez dismissed her, comparing her to a fly chased by an eagle, with him being the eagle.
Machado, known as her nation’s “steel woman”, has been subject to journalists and analysts’ attention due to her strong political stances. She remains a point of interest and controversy, dating back to 2002, when she was present at the presidential palace during Pedro Carmona’s inauguration, amidst a failed coup attempt against Chavéz. Machado, however, refuted any involvement in a 2005 New York Times interview, claiming her presence was simply to visit Carmona’s wife, a close friend.
Machado’s assertiveness surfaced again in a 2019 BBC interview, where she appealed to “Western democracies” to realise Maduro’s potential removal would necessitate express and substantial force. Today, plenty of her followers believe her tough demeanour is necessary for the nation.
Machado, also a mother of three who all reside overseas, has shown homage to her softer side, making pledges to reunite families split due to emigration. Henrique Capriles, an opposition leader and previous critic of Machado, noted that her political self-reliance has worked to her advantage, winning over politically disillusioned voters.
Nevertheless, Capriles proposed that González, a more reserved diplomat, might be better oriented to the sensitive job of dismantling the longstanding socialist system. He suggested that key power factions such as military might view Machado as too adversarial.
Whilst campaigning, Machado has committed to obliterating socialism forever and erecting a society where ‘offenders and the fraudulent are imprisoned.’ Reflecting on Machado’s impact, Capriles highlighted that although she may not induce fear, her perceived strength lies elsewhere.
The government, clearly threatened by Machado, had restricted her travel a decade ago, deeming her Washington lobbying dangerous. Presently, the ruling power appears to have underestimated her importance, with her domestic confinement likely one of their major tactical blunders.
Doris Lugo (40) turned up to the event in Guanare. She said her husband and son left home to seek work abroad.
In a reassuring tone, she predicted the victorious comeback of González and Machado. “Our trust is placed in the Almighty,” she elaborated, expressing her belief that the smaller force will indeed overpower the mighty one. This content was first seen in The New York Times, a subsidiary of The New York Times Company, in the year 2024.