Delcy Eloína Rodríguez Gómez

Money Moves

In power since Maduro's ouster in January 2026

After seven years as a federal fugitive, Colombian businessman Álvaro Pulido is in US custody, due in a Miami courtroom Tuesday. He faces two indictments accusing him of laundering more than $2 billion stolen from Venezuelan government programs.

Updated Yesterday

Force in Play

Acting President of Venezuela; US embassy reopened in Caracas in February; amnesty law approved February 19

Delta Force operators captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas at 2 a.m. on January 3 as explosions rocked the capital and helicopters evacuated them to the USS Iwo Jima, bound for New York. By Saturday afternoon, Maduro arrived at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn—the first American military capture of a sitting head of state since Manuel Noriega in 1989.

Updated Oct 3

Rule Changes

Promised elections without a date; met Trump at UN on Sept 22

Venezuela freed 39 political prisoners over the weekend, the largest release since spring. The move came days after interim President Delcy Rodríguez met Donald Trump in New York, where she promised elections but gave no date.

Updated Sep 28

Force in Play

Managing US demands and opposition talks while maintaining Chavista power structure

Opposition leader Juan Pablo Guanipa was released from prison on February 8, 2026, then seized by armed men hours later and placed under house arrest. In late September, after a second round of talks between the interim government and opposition, at least 29 more political prisoners were freed.

Updated Sep 27

Money Moves

Acting president since Maduro's capture in January 2026; pledged elections without a date at the U.N. on Sept. 23

Venezuela's opposition backed the U.S. operation that captured Nicolás Maduro in January. Nine months on, acting president Delcy Rodríguez told the U.N. on Sept. 23 that elections will come, but gave no date and thanked President Trump.

Updated Sep 24

New Capabilities

Leading Venezuela's earthquake recovery and reconstruction; her 180-day constitutional mandate expired July 3 without an election announcement

Two weeks after the June 24 twin earthquakes, Venezuela's confirmed death toll reached 3,535 — more than double the figure recorded in the first days after the disaster. Most international rescue teams have withdrawn, leaving 29,567 Venezuelan military and security personnel and more than 27,000 volunteers to continue recovery.

Updated Jul 9

Rule Changes

Acting President; signed historic oil reform into law on January 29, 2026

Hugo Chávez nationalized Venezuela's oil sector in 2007, expropriating assets from ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, and other foreign companies. Nineteen years later, less than a month after U.S. forces captured Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela's National Assembly passed legislation reversing that policy. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez signed it into law.

Updated May 26

Force in Play

Acting President of Venezuela; balancing domestic Chavista support against U.S. pressure

Congress hasn't declared war since 1942, though presidents have ordered 212 military strikes without formal declarations. On January 3, 2026, U.S. special forces raided Venezuela, captured President Nicolás Maduro in his residence, and flew him to New York to face narcoterrorism charges.

Updated May 22

Force in Play

Interim President consolidating power; pledged elections without timeline; invited to Washington; signed amnesty law February 20

Seven weeks after U.S. special forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on January 3, 2026, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has consolidated interim power through military loyalty pledges, oil privatization, and prisoner releases. In an NBC interview on February 12, she pledged 'free and fair' elections but refused to set a timeline, conditioning them on Venezuela being 'free from sanctions'.

Updated May 22

Force in Play

In office since January 3, 2026

Brazil protected Argentina's embassy in Caracas for 14 months after Nicolás Maduro expelled Argentine diplomats in July 2024. That arrangement ended January 16, 2026, when Italy assumed custodianship. The shift was triggered by Brazil's opposition to the U.S. military operation that captured Maduro two weeks earlier, and accelerated by Argentine President Milei's sustained social media attacks on Brazilian President Lula.

Updated May 21

Force in Play

Sworn in as interim president January 5, 2026; initially defiant but shifted to conciliatory tone after Trump threats

Delta Force dragged Nicolás Maduro from his bedroom at 2 AM on January 3, threw him on a helicopter, and flew him to the USS Iwo Jima bound for Manhattan. The Venezuelan president now faces narco-terrorism charges in the same courthouse that convicted El Chapo.

Updated May 19