Venezuela Top Court Appoints Delcy Rodriguez Acting President After Maduro’s Ouster

Caracas [Venezuela], Jan 4: Venezuela’s Supreme Court on Saturday named Vice President Delcy Rodriguez as acting president after the removal of President Nicolas Maduro by the United States, a dramatic development that has deepened the country’s political crisis.

The ruling, announced late Saturday night, said Maduro was in a “material and temporary impossibility to exercise his functions,” triggering constitutional provisions on presidential absence, CNN reported. The decision was delivered during a televised court session.

Reading the order, Supreme Court Justice Tania D’Amelio said Rodriguez would “assume and exercise, as acting president, all the powers, duties and faculties inherent to the office of president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela” to ensure administrative continuity and national defence.

Citing the constitution, the court said executive authority automatically passes to the vice president in the event of a temporary or permanent absence of the president, according to CNN.

As the transition unfolded in Caracas, US authorities began preparations to transfer Maduro to the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in New York City. The federal jail has long faced criticism over overcrowding, staff shortages, inmate violence and infrastructure failures, CNN noted.

Built in the 1990s, the MDC has housed several high-profile detainees, including R. Kelly, Martin Shkreli, Ghislaine Maxwell, Sam Bankman-Fried and Sean “Diddy” Combs. Suspected cartel leader Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia was also held there while awaiting trial.

The facility has drawn repeated scrutiny over safety conditions. In June 2024, an inmate was fatally stabbed, followed by another death during a fight a month later. A major power outage in 2019 left inmates without heat or electricity for days, prompting a Justice Department probe and a USD 10 million settlement, CNN reported. The MDC is now New York City’s only federal detention centre after the closure of the Metropolitan Correctional Center in 2019.

In Venezuela, the immediate aftermath of US military action—including airstrikes and the detention of Maduro and his wife—initially sparked celebrations among opposition supporters. “Venezuelans, the hour of freedom has arrived,” opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said, according to CNN.

The optimism soon faded after US President Donald Trump signalled reluctance to back Machado and instead indicated openness to working with Rodriguez, a Maduro ally. Opposition-linked communication channels fell largely silent amid uncertainty.

Machado had demanded the immediate installation of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as president and urged the armed forces to back him. Gonzalez is recognised by several Western governments as the winner of Venezuela’s disputed 2024 presidential election.

Trump later told reporters he had not spoken to Machado and questioned her domestic support, describing her as a “very nice woman” but saying she lacked the backing to lead the country, CNN reported.

Meanwhile, video released by US authorities showed Maduro in handcuffs during a staged perp walk, with the deposed leader wishing reporters and DEA agents a Happy New Year.

Former US National Security Advisor John Bolton told CNN that plans to remove Maduro were discussed during Trump’s first term but stalled due to lack of focus. Bolton said Trump was particularly interested in Venezuelan oil and believed economic pressure alone could fracture Maduro’s regime.

According to CNN, the United States later carried out what Trump described as a “large-scale strike against Venezuela,” capturing Maduro to face charges. The operation was conducted without congressional approval. (Agencies)