Who is Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, now leading the country?

Following the sudden chaos and conflagration that followed the American-led abduction of President Nicolas Maduro, a brief power vacuum appeared in Venezuela.

However, shortly after the US military began its military exercises in Caracas and other locations on Saturday, US President Donald Trump announced that Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, 56, had been sworn in as interim president in a surprise snub against Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who was awarded last year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

The US president referred to the right-wing Machado as having not enough support or “respect” to be Venezuela’s leader. He had cosied up to Trump, especially after his own honor, which he himself coveted and she dedicated to him.

Trump claimed Rodriguez spoke with Marco Rubio, the US’s ambassador, and that he was “essentially willing to do what we believe is necessary” to restore Venezuela.

Trump continued, “I believe she was quite gracious.” We can’t accept the fact that someone else will occupy Venezuela without considering the interests of the country’s citizens.

Rodriguez’s remarks shortly after the strikes and kidnapping were diametrical: She referred to the US military action as “brutal aggression” and demanded Maduro’s immediate release.

As she was flanked by senior civil servants and military commanders, Rodriguez defiantly declared, “There is only one president in this country, and his name is Nicolas Maduro.”

The current acting president of Venezuela is then who?

roots in revolution

Rodriguez was born on May 18, 1969, in Caracas. Jorge Antonio Rodriguez, a left-wing rebel fighter, founded the Socialist League in the 1970s. In 1976, her father was tortured in police custody, which shocked a number of activists of the time, including a young Maduro.

Jorge Rodriguez’s brother, who is also known as Jorge, is also in charge of the National Assembly.

She is an attorney who received her legal degree from Venezuela’s Central University and quickly rose through the political ranks. Hugo Chavez’ socialist “revolution” has a long history of being represented on the global stage by Rodriguez, with those who carry on his legacy referred to as Chavistas.

She was the head of a pro-government Constituent Assembly, which gave Maduro more authority, in 2017. She also held positions as the minister of communication and information from 2013 to 2014, the minister of foreign affairs from 2014 to 2017.

economic prowess

Rodriguez is occasionally compared to many of the soldiers who fought alongside Chavez in the 1990s.

Rodriguez has a significant impact on Venezuela’s stagnant private sector and her role as finance and oil minister, which she held while also holding her vice presidential position. In a bid to combat hyperinflation, she has used conventional economic strategies.

In August 2024, Maduro assigned Rodriguez to manage Venezuela’s most significant industry, adding the oil ministry to her portfolio.

Rodriguez forged close ties with Wall Street Republicans who opposed a Venezuelan government change under US control.

Erik Prince, the founder of Blackwater Security Company, and Richard Grenell, a Trump special envoy who attempted to pacify a deal with Maduro to increase US influence in Venezuela, were two of her former contacts.

A “tiger” is what?

Rodriguez has fought back vehemently against his socialist government, calling him a “tiger” despite being perceived as more moderate.

Maduro described her as “a young woman, brave, seasoned, daughter of a martyr, revolutionary, and tested in a thousand battles” when she was appointed vice president in June 2018.

Rodriguez pressed the US government to provide evidence of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores’ existence after the pair’s Saturday abduction, and he yelled no punches at the US government.

We urge the people of Venezuela to remain united because anyone can suffer the same fate as Venezuelans. In a speech that the state television channel VTV broadcast, she claimed that the brutal use of force to sway the people’s will can be used against any nation.

Rodriguez was given the order to serve as interim president by the Venezuelan Supreme Court’s Constitutional Chamber later on Saturday.

Source: Aljazeera