María Corina Machado Has a Message for Midterm Voters

Nobel Peace Prize winner and Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado knows a thing or two about communism and socialism. She's spent decades bravely looking it in the eye and calling it out for what it is, even when it has led to her becoming the victim of violence, having to live in hiding, or sending her own children to live in exile in other countries.

Machado left Venezuela last December to collect her Nobel Prize, which she later gave to Donald Trump as a thank you for taking out Nicolás Maduro, and despite repeated attempts to return home, she has been denied by Delcy Rodríguez's "interim government."  For this reason, she is currently living in Panama, waiting to go back, so she can offer her support to the Venezuelan people in a way that few others can, and eventually campaign for her own presidential run when free and fair elections are held. It's what the majority of the people want, and she says it will be proof that Trump's plan is working.

Over the weekend, Machado met with Fox News' Rachel Campos-Duffy in Panama for an exclusive Fox & Friends Weekend interview. What really stood out from that was Machado's message for midterm voters here in the United States. 

Campos-Duffy brought up the elections that the American people will face in the coming weeks and mentioned the rise of socialist candidates who made it through the primaries and have a good chance of getting elected in numbers we haven't seen before. 

Machado responded: 

You know, Rachel, I've learned in my life that it's very hard to take lessons from other people's experiences. Over 30 years ago, when warned about what [Hugo] Chávez represented, most Venezuelans said 'No, don't worry. Venezuela is not Cuba — that's not going to happen to us.'

So, what I ask people that believe in freedom is to look at history, to look at evidence, not the propaganda and publicity... Communism, socialism brings misery, violence, separation and oppression. And once you lose your freedom, once you lose democracy, it’s so hard to gain it back. 

And if you know someone from Venezuela, wherever you are, in the United States or any other place, talk to them, ask them how our nation was deceived. Because they find ways to make it very sexy and very attractive — 'you get things for free, you don't have to work.'  That's not true. 

She said that in the end, dignity comes from honest, productive ideas and effort. She also said that ultimately, she has trust in the voters in the United States. "I know that temptations and wrong ideas occur, but society has ways to defend itself," she said.

She made the case for free speech, saying it's the first thing you have to defend because "it's the first thing socialism wants to take away."  

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Campos-Duffy asked what Machado would tell President Trump right now, and she smiled and said, "many things."  

"First of all, as I did when I met, I would start by saying on behalf of the Venezuelan people, how grateful we are because taking Maduro to face justice opened the door for a path to freedom," she said. "As I said before, it took vision, courage, strength, and determination. And it had to be done. Secondly, we have to finish the task."

She's right. And there's a growing call for that to happen sooner rather than later. Here, you can watch that entire portion of the conversation. 

Maria Corina Machado’s heartfelt warning to American voters ahead of the Midterm elections. https://t.co/XBxYZEahSF

— Rachel Campos-Duffy (@RCamposDuffy) October 17, 2026

Trump praised Machado last week, and on Monday, a reporter asked him what he thought of a presidential election between Delcy and Machado. He said it would be "interesting" but didn't provide much more information. If it happens, Machado would win in a landslide. There are few leaders in this world as beloved as she is. 

🚨 ÚLTIMA HORA El presidente Trump dice que le parecería "interesante" ver una elección presidencial entre Delcy Rodríguez y María Corina Machado en Venezuela. https://t.co/woflOtnn3Q

— Emmanuel Rincón (@EmmaRincon) October 19, 2026

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