Nicolás Maduro, who rose from a unionized bus driver to the presidency of Venezuela, was captured by U.S. forces Saturday in Caracas, ending years of political and economic turmoil under his rule.
Maduro’s political career began in the mid-1980s after a year of ideological training in Cuba. Returning to Venezuela, he became a bus driver and quickly rose through union ranks, later joining Hugo Chávez’s movement. After serving as lawmaker, foreign minister, and vice president, Maduro was named Chávez’s political heir, winning the presidency in 2013 after Chávez’s death.
His tenure was marked by severe economic collapse, hyperinflation, shortages of food and medicine, and mass migration of over 7.7 million Venezuelans. Maduro’s government suppressed opposition through arrests, violent crackdowns on protests, and the creation of a pro-government Constituent Assembly after losing control of the National Assembly in 2015.
Maduro survived an assassination attempt in 2018 but failed to stabilize the economy. Despite sanctions and international pressure, he manipulated elections and blocked opponents, including Nobel laureate María Corina Machado, from running. The disputed 2024 election, widely considered fraudulent, saw Maduro declared winner, sparking mass protests and international condemnation.
Following Trump’s return to the U.S. presidency in 2025, Maduro faced intensified U.S. military pressure, including a Caribbean deployment targeting narco-terrorism. This ultimately led to his capture, marking the dramatic end of a leader who never escaped the shadow of his mentor, Hugo Chávez.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are set to face charges in New York, while Venezuela’s future remains uncertain.
