The Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Corina Machado in recognition of her relentless efforts to promote democratic rights in Venezuela and her dedication to achieving a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.
Norwegian Nobel committee chair, Jørgen Watne Frydnes, commended Machado as a “brave and committed champion of peace” who “keeps the flame of democracy burning during a growing darkness”.
The committee says “democracy depends on people who refuse to stay silent”.
According to the Nobel Prize Website, Machado has been at the forefront of Venezuela’s struggle for democracy amid growing authoritarianism. She now leads the opposition party Vente Venezuela and in 2017, helped establish the Soy Venezuela alliance, uniting pro-democracy forces across political lines.
She is trained as an engineer and in finance, and initially had a brief career in business before turning to social and political activism. In 1992, she founded the Atenea Foundation to support street children in Caracas.
A decade later, she co-founded Súmate, an organisation dedicated to promoting free and fair elections through training and election monitoring. In 2010, Machado was elected to the National Assembly with a record number of votes, but the regime expelled her in 2014.
In 2023, Machado announced her candidacy for the 2024 presidential election. When barred from running, she backed opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia. Despite widespread mobilisation and evidence suggesting the opposition’s victory, the regime declared itself the winner and further consolidated its power.
Machado is being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize primarily for her tireless efforts to advance democracy in Venezuela. Her work also highlights the broader global challenge of defending democracy—the right to free expression, fair voting, and representative government—which remains a cornerstone of peace both within and between nations, the Nobel Prize Website stated.
The 2025 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize was announced on Friday, October 10. The Nobel Committee does not confirm the names of nominees, neither to the media nor to the candidates themselves.
However, this year, there are 338 candidates nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, including 244 individuals and 94 organisations.
There were 286 nominees in 2024.
The highest number of nominees was in 2016 with 376 candidates.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee is tasked with selecting the laureates for the Nobel Peace Prize. Nominations may be submitted by individuals who are qualified to do so. The Committee consists of five members appointed by the Storting, Norway’s parliament.
This year, the most talked about name for the category involved US President Donald Trump, who has made it clear on multiple occasions that “deserves” the award.
Among those who have submitted nominations to the Norwegian award committee are Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet for halting border conflict with Thailand.
However, these nominations came after the January 31 deadline. More names can be added during the final meeting of the members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which this year was held on February 28.
