Venezuela prohibits opposition leader from holding office.

Ex-lawmaker Maria Corina Machado Faces 15-Year Ban from Public Office

Maria Corina Machado, a leading candidate for the Venezuelan opposition’s presidential nomination, has been hit with a 15-year ban from holding public office, according to the controller general. This news comes just ahead of the October primary where Machado is favored to win.

Leading the Polls, but Facing Obstacles

Machado, a 55-year-old industrial engineer, is currently leading the polls among the 13 candidates in the primary. The primary aims to select a unity candidate to challenge President Nicolas Maduro in the 2024 election.

However, this is not the first ban imposed on Machado. The previous ban has been extended due to her support for US sanctions on the Maduro government and her backing of former opposition leader Juan Guaido.

Additionally, Machado has been unable to leave Venezuela for the past nine years. In 2015, she was banned from office for 12 months because she allegedly failed to include certain benefits in her assets declaration, although Machado denies ever receiving those benefits.

Lawmaker Jose Brito, who serves in the ruling party-controlled national assembly, has requested clarification on the status of the 2015 ban.

“The citizen Maria Corina Machado Parisca … is inhabilitated from the exercise of any public office for the period of 15 years,” stated the controller in its response, dated June 27.

Defiance and Determination

Machado, known for her proposals to privatize the state oil company PDVSA and restructure Venezuela’s debt, remains undeterred by the ban. She addressed her supporters, stating that “a ban by the regime is garbage, it means zero.” She believes this ban only demonstrates the Maduro government’s fear of defeat.

While the ban does not prevent Machado from participating in the primary, it does hinder her ability to register with electoral authorities for the presidential race.

Opposition’s Struggle for Change

The opposition has long criticized these bans as tactics used by the ruling party to suppress political change in Venezuela. The country’s economy has been in crisis for years, and the fractured opposition faces challenges such as widespread voter apathy and the absence of state support in organizing the primary after the resignation of electoral council members.

(Reporting by Mayela Armas and Vivian Sequera; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb; Editing by Daniel Wallis)