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The City Council of Doral, in Miami-Dade County, voted on Thursday to name a street "María Corina Machado Way" in recognition of the career of the Venezuelan opposition leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
The initiative was driven by councilman Rafael Piñeyro and involves the renaming of a section of a main roadway in the city.
The mayor of Doral, Christi Fraga, described the decision as “a great honor” and stated that the distinction recognizes the courage, perseverance, and democratic commitment of Machado, reported the news agency EFE.
The councilors reported that the opposition leader has already been notified about the recognition and noted that there is a possibility she will be present at the official inauguration of the street, scheduled for an upcoming date.
Doral is part of the Miami metropolitan area in southern Florida, where one of the largest Venezuelan communities in the United States resides, estimated to be around a quarter of a million people of Venezuelan origin, with a strong concentration in that municipality.
The decision of the Municipal Council occurred on the same day that Machado had a private lunch with President Donald Trump at the White House.
The meeting took place weeks after the capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, on January 3, during a U.S. military operation in Venezuela that resulted in their transfer to New York, where they face drug trafficking charges.
After that operation, Trump has sidelined Machado from the formal political transition process in Venezuela.
In a press conference, the White House spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, defined the opposition figure as a "courageous voice" for many Venezuelans, but stated that Washington believes she lacks sufficient support to lead the transition.
Trump himself confirmed on Thursday that Machado presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal during the meeting at the White House, describing the gesture as "a wonderful display of mutual respect."
Machado explained that the symbolic delivery of the medal was a recognition of the American president's commitment to freedom and to the Venezuelan cause.
The visit marked a turning point in the relationship between the two, after Trump had previously questioned Machado's ability to lead the transition.
Machado received the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 for his role in the democratic resistance against the Maduro regime and his defense of human rights in Latin America.
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