The United States has called on Venezuela to release the remaining individuals it considers political prisoners. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Venezuelan counterpart Oliver Blanco on Monday, where he reiterated this demand and discussed reforms aimed at establishing conditions for free, fair, and credible elections.
Since U.S. forces apprehended Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on January 3 and brought him to New York to face trial, more than 1,000 political prisoners have been released. However, according to the Venezuelan prisoners' rights group Foro Penal, 322 people remain in detention.
The release of political prisoners has been a long-standing demand of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. Machado, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2025, returned to Venezuela in October after nearly a year in exile and has met with relatives of detainees.
Many of those currently detained were arrested following the 2024 presidential election. The National Electoral Council, controlled by government loyalists, declared Maduro the winner, despite opposition tallies and independent media reports suggesting the opposition candidate had won. The Carter Center, which sent observers, stated the election could not be considered democratic. A UN fact-finding mission concluded that the Venezuelan government engaged in "harsh repression" against perceived opponents and dissenters.
Following Maduro's apprehension, his vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, was sworn in as interim president. While Rodríguez has the support of the Trump administration, opposition parties within Venezuela have expressed concerns about the slow pace of reforms. The U.S. State Department emphasized its commitment to a three-phase plan involving stabilization, economic recovery, political reconciliation, and democratic transition.
Rubio previously stated that Venezuela's "election infrastructure" must be replaced for future elections to be considered valid, insisting that changes needed to happen quickly. Rodríguez has announced that elections will be held under a "renewed" electoral authority, but has not provided a timeline. Machado has advocated for elections to take place in 2027, and more recently, within the next year.