In her initial reaction, the Venezuelan opposition leader said she was"in shock" upon learning she had won the Nobel Peace Prize. In a recorded phone call with her team, she said:"What is this? I can't believe it."

According to the committee, Machado stood up for free and fair elections for more than twenty years and refers to an earlier quote from the politician:"it was a choice between votes and bullets."

María Corina Machado praised for her efforts

The organization praises Machado for her recent advocacy for the independence of the judiciary, human rights and parliamentary representation.

“We are not naive”; opposition leader Maria Machado determined to defeat Maduro

Machado will receive the prize for "her tireless commitment to the democratic rights of the people of Venezuela and her struggle for a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy," the Norwegian Nobel Committee said.

White House criticizes choice

The White House on Friday criticized the Nobel Peace Prize Committee's decision to award the peace prize to a Venezuelan opposition leader instead of US President Donald Trump.

“President Trump will continue to make peace agreements, end wars, and save lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be another like him who can move mountains through the sheer force of his will,” White House spokesman Steven Cheung said in a message on X.

“The Nobel Committee has proven that they put politics above peace.”

This is María Corina Machado, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

Machado also appeals to US President Donald Trump on X. “We are on the threshold of victory,” said Machado. “And we count more than ever on President Trump, the people of the United States, the people of Latin America and all democratic countries around the world to be our main allies in achieving freedom and democracy. Venezuela will be free!”

Trump has not yet congratulated Machado on her victory.

María Corina Machado helped found Súmate

In 2002, Machado helped found Súmate, a civil rights organization that monitors elections.

After Machado was barred from running in the 2024 elections, she endorsed Edmundo González Urrutia. Maduro won the election, but the opposition claimed there was evidence that 70 percent of the vote had gone to González Urrutia. This led to widespread protests across the country against the election results.

After the 2024 elections, Machado went into hiding:"Despite serious threats against her, she remained in the country, a choice that has inspired millions of people," the committee said.

During the local and parliamentary elections in May 2025, she called for a boycott and empty polling stations. She called the elections"a huge joke the regime wants to stage to forget its defeat on July 28."