María Corina Machado
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Corina Machado, recognizing her tireless efforts to promote democracy, human rights, and peaceful political transition in Venezuela.
Machado, a leading voice for democratic reform, has long stood against Venezuela’s authoritarian regime.
The Committee praised her as “one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times.”
Over the past two decades, Machado has helped unite Venezuela’s deeply divided opposition, advocating for free elections, judicial independence, and freedom of expression. As the founder of Súmate, she promoted fair elections under the motto “ballots over bullets.”
Despite facing harassment, threats, and political bans, Machado continued to push for democratic change. During the 2024 presidential election, when her candidacy was blocked, she supported opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia. Her movement mobilized thousands of volunteers as election observers to safeguard the vote despite intimidation and violence.
The Nobel Committee emphasized that Venezuela’s struggle mirrors a global trend of democracy under threat, where authoritarianism and repression are rising. In awarding Machado, the Committee reaffirmed that “democracy is a precondition for lasting peace.”
Machado remains in Venezuela despite serious risks to her safety, inspiring millions who continue to demand freedom. The Committee said she embodies “the hope of a peaceful, democratic future”, fulfilling all three criteria in Alfred Nobel’s will: promoting peace, unity, and resistance against militarization.
Maria Corina Machado’s recognition sends a powerful message to the world — that peaceful resistance, civic courage, and democratic values remain the strongest tools for lasting change.