Venezuela swears in Delcy Rodriguez as acting president

Venezuela’s parliament on January 5 swore in Delcy Rodriguez as interim president, two days after US forces seized President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and transferred them to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

Rodriguez took the oath of office at a National Assembly ceremony, saying she was acting “in the name of all Venezuelans”, per foreign media reports.

While signalling a willingness to cooperate with Washington, she condemned Maduro’s arrest, saying she was “in pain over the kidnapping of our heroes, the hostages in the United States,” referring to Maduro and Flores. Parliament denounced the US military operation and pledged full support for Rodriguez, who had served as Maduro’s vice president.

Lawmakers reaffirmed their loyalty to Maduro, chanting “Let’s go Nico!”—a slogan from his disputed 2024 re-election campaign. Senior lawmaker Fernando Soto Rojas accused US President Donald Trump of overreach, saying: “The president of the United States, Mr Trump, claims to be the prosecutor, the judge, and the policeman of the world,” adding: “You will not succeed… our legitimate president, Nicolas Maduro, returns victorious to Miraflores.”

The Supreme Court formally ordered Rodriguez to assume the presidency in an acting capacity, a move later backed by the military. Parliament also re-elected her brother Jorge Rodriguez as speaker, who vowed to pursue “all procedures, all platforms, and all avenues to bring back Nicolas Maduro Moros, my brother, my president.”

Maduro’s son and lawmaker, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, also pledged loyalty to the acting president, telling Rodriguez: “Count on me, count on my family,” and saying the country was “in good hands” until his parents’ return. He later addressed protesters, saying he remained in “indirect” contact with his father.

Tensions remained high in Caracas after unidentified drones were reported flying over the Miraflores presidential palaceon January 5, prompting security forces to open fire. A government source said the situation was under control.

Rodriguez, who has insisted Maduro remains Venezuela’s “only” president, later extended an offer of cooperation to Washington. President Trump, however, warned she could face consequences worse than Maduro’s if she failed to comply with US demands on policy reforms and oil access.

By Tamilla Hasanova