The Nobel Committee awarded its 2025 Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado on Friday, bypassing President Donald Trump despite his brokering of the historic Gaza ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee selected Machado for her efforts in promoting democratic rights in Venezuela and her struggle against the Maduro dictatorship.
Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the committee, praised her tireless work toward achieving a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy in the South American nation.
The announcement came as Israel’s military declared the Gaza ceasefire agreement had officially taken effect following a cabinet vote.
Trump’s name, which had circulated heavily in media speculation for weeks, did not make the final cut for the distinguished prize.
Trump had mounted an aggressive campaign for the Nobel Prize throughout his second term.
He positioned himself as a global peacemaker, promoted his 20-point Gaza peace plan, and repeatedly claimed to have ended multiple wars around the world.
The president has pursued Nobel recognition since his first term in office when he stated that many people believed he had earned it.
Speculation about his potential win intensified after he successfully brokered the peace agreement that paused the two-year war between Israel and Hamas.
Both sides agreed to the first phase of Trump’s plan, which includes pausing fighting and releasing hostages.
The deal could potentially end a brutal conflict that killed tens of thousands of people and created a severe humanitarian crisis in the region.
Machado received recognition for unifying a deeply divided Venezuelan political opposition.
Frydnes described her as a key figure who brought common ground to demands for free elections and representative government in the troubled nation.
The opposition leader has lived in hiding for the past year under serious threats against her life.
Despite these dangers, she remained in Venezuela, a decision that inspired millions of her supporters across the country.
President Nicolás Maduro’s government systematically targeted real and perceived opponents before last year’s presidential election.
Machado was initially set to challenge Maduro but was disqualified by the government, forcing Edmundo González to take her place as a candidate who had never previously run for office.
The Daily Mail reported that the election period featured widespread repression including disqualifications, arrests, and human rights violations against opposition figures.
The crackdown intensified after Venezuela’s National Electoral Council, controlled by Maduro loyalists, declared him the winner despite credible evidence suggesting otherwise.
When reporters questioned Frydnes about Trump’s campaign for the prize and the mounting speculation, he responded diplomatically.
He noted that the committee has witnessed every type of campaign in the Nobel Peace Prize’s long history and receives thousands of letters annually from people advocating for peace.
“This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates and that room is filled with courage and integrity,” Frydnes said.
“We base our decision only on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel.”
Trump faced several obstacles in his pursuit of the prize.
Nominations for this year’s award closed at the end of January, shortly after he returned to the White House.
The prize honors actions carried out in 2024, when Trump was elected but not yet in office.
Over his two terms, Trump received more than ten nominations from various international figures.
These included nominations from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, a Ukrainian politician, and legislators from the United States, Sweden and Norway.
“I’ve done six wars, I’ve ended six wars,” Trump said on Aug. 18 during a summit with Ukrainian and European leaders.
“If you look at the six deals I settled this year, they were all at war. I didn’t do any ceasefires.”
The following day in a Fox News interview, he revised the number to seven wars.
Netanyahu publicly nominated Trump in July, stating he was forging peace in one country and region after another.
Trump also took credit for stopping what he described as Iran and Israel’s 12-day war in June.
