Venezuelan citizens took to the streets of Caracas this Thursday to demand an electoral calendar and call for the return of opposition leader María Corina Machado, as reported by journalist Orlando Avendaño on his social media.
Among the slogans chanted by the crowd were "Out, Delcy! Out, Delcy!" and "Elections now!" The participants carried Venezuelan flags, signs featuring Machado's image, and banners with messages like "Hunger for freedom."
The protest occurs a day after the acting president Delcy Rodríguez briefly met with Donald Trump in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. The meeting, lasting about 15 minutes, was described as "historic" by the Chavista regime, although a poll published this Thursday showed that 91% of Venezuelans disapproved of that meeting.
In his speech before the UN, Rodríguez asserted that "there will be elections in Venezuela" and spoke of a "democratic transformation," but did not set a date or present any timeline. Marco Rubio revealed that during the meeting with Trump, they discussed the restructuring of Venezuela's sovereign debt, economic stabilization, and a political transition towards free and fair elections in Venezuela.
The unrest in the streets also reflects the accumulated frustration from Machado's repeated failed attempts to set foot on Venezuelan soil. On Wednesday, the opposition leader tried to enter the country from Panama three times in less than 24 hours without success, her team informed the EFE agency. Those three attempts increased the total number of thwarted returns to at least seven since she left Venezuela in December 2025.
Ana Corina Sosa, daughter of the opposition leader, warned on Wednesday that her mother's return faces "serious obstacles," while Machado had publicly promised to return "imminently" in mid-September, reiterating that she considers the democratic transition in the country "incomplete."
The mobilizations this Thursday are part of a wave of protests that has intensified throughout September, with prior marches on the 3rd, 17th, and 23rd of the same month, all sharing the same core demands. The Chavista regime, which has maintained power without calling new elections since Nicolás Maduro's capture on January 3, 2026, has systematically blocked Machado's return and avoids committing to specific dates.
Rodríguez had already made his position clear at the beginning of September: "There will be an electoral process, but under the conditions that Venezuela is prepared for. I do not set a date."
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