She’s home. Opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner (and, with any luck, the country’s next president) María Corina Machado arrived back in Venezuela on Sunday. She posted the following on X before videos of her in Santa Rosa, surrounded by the people who adore her, began surfacing on social media: “I am here. With you.”

For a few moments, no one was sure it was true. If you'll recall, she escaped Venezuela last December in a plot that would be perfect for a blockbuster movie, and she's been trying to get back for months. But soon, there was footage of her visiting a church and riding through the streets as supporters gathered along the side of the road, shouting things like ¡Libertad!, Elecciones, and
¡Hasta el final! At one point, she stood up through the sunroof of a vehicle and led the crowd as they sang the Venezuelan national anthem.  

By late Sunday night, she had arrived in Caracas. No major incidents, arrests, or government crackdowns related to her return have been reported so far, but I don't trust the Delcy Rodríguez regime for a minute, so I hope she and her supporters, who are an overwhelming majority of the country, remain safe. 

So how did it happen? Well, as I reported a few weeks ago, she'd tried to enter the country at least eight times since the double earthquake rocked the country in late June, but she was denied by land, air, and sea. In this case, she reportedly took a private plane to Colombia and was able to cross the border by land. 

“During her trip, Machado was accompanied by a team of U.S. private security and received assistance from the conservative Colombian government, according to the source. The United States instructed Rodríguez not to interfere with Machado's return, the source added,” The Wall Street Journal reported. 

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"The conditions allowing for the safe return of Ms. Machado to Venezuela is the direct result of the U.S. supported reconciliation talks which has already seen hundreds of political prisoners freed and hundreds of political opposition figures return from exile," Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted to X on Sunday. Given how close they are, the statement felt a little cold in my humble opinion, but that is not new in the way he talks about her lately. Perhaps it's mere pragmatism. We shall see.  

According to Spanish reporter David Alandete, who is one of the few journalists I trust, "It was her second attempt from that country and the ninth since June. Sources in Washington assure me that the Trump Administration was divided until the very last moment. The pressure from Florida legislators proved decisive, who warned the White House of the serious political cost involved in giving the impression of blocking the return of the Nobel Peace Prize winner, especially just days before the November 3 elections." 

I don't normally like to hear from "sources," but I have heard myself that the Trump administration was divided on the topic. I have a feeling that our dear deputy secretary of state, Christopher Landau, may have played a role as well. He's definitely one of the good ones.   

Edmundo González, the man who actually won the 2024 Venezuelan presidential election, also confirmed the news on X and said that he would soon return as well. He's been living in exile in Spain since the elections. 

"Venezuela! I am thrilled to announce to you that our leader, my dear Maria Corina, is on Venezuelan soil," he said, adding, "Today is a very important day for Venezuelans. Our sovereign voice returns with her to lead and guide this process! Very soon I will be with you and with her so that our country truly advances toward freedom."  

So what's next? 

Machado says she plans to push for free and fair elections and travel the country meeting her supporters. It will be interesting to see if she can operate freely or if the Venezuela she left behind last year is the same one she returned to on Sunday. 

In the meantime, the third round of the political reconciliation talks between Venezuela’s 2015 National Assembly, led by Dr. Dinorah Figuera, and the so-called "interim government" just wrapped up. The State Department released the following statement last week: 

This latest round delivered tangible results including agreement to work to review and revise several repressive laws to increase political and social freedom and guarantee the participation of all political actors. It also furthered progress on rebuilding an independent Supreme Court, which continues to advance towards the selection of 32 new judges. Since the beginning of the reconciliation talks, this process has also strengthened press freedoms, restoring access to more than 70 previously blocked websites, produced an agreement to recover gold holdings in the Bank of England for earthquake relief, and advanced efforts to reform the repressive Law Against Hatred. The interim government has also released a significant number of political prisoners since the reconciliation process began, for a total of more than 1,000 released since Operation Absolute Resolve. We continue to urge for the immediate release of all political prisoners.

"The Trump Administration remains committed to supporting this Venezuelan-led process as part of President Trump and Secretary Rubio’s three-phase plan for stabilization, economic recovery, and political reconciliation leading to a peaceful democratic transition," it concluded. 

I can tell you this — I know many of Machado's supporters, and they are beside themselves right now. Heck, I'm thrilled about this latest development. If you haven't noticed, the fight for democracy in Venezuela and the ability for the people of that country to elect this woman, something they've been trying to do for quite some time, has become personal for me too, and I'm thrilled that she has returned to them. 

I've actually received many messages from y'all today asking why I wasn't covering it. My dad is very sick and in the hospital right now, and I spent most of the day with him, watching football, but I had my phone out watching the news out of Venezuela too. As a matter of fact, I wrote part of this article on my iPhone while my dad was having an MRI, which is quite hard to do, I learned. 

There is momentum growing within the country, and the woman who should be its leader returning to its soil will only increase that. The call for elections in 2027 is also growing from within the United States and beyond, from many prominent Trump supporters and donors. Some of the latest include Gen. Mike Flynn and Bob Unanue, the CEO of GOYA Foods.    

The question now is: Can what's happening in a room in Washington, D.C. keep up with what's happening on the ground in Venezuela? The clock is ticking.