Hugo Chávez was the president of Venezuela before Nicolás Maduro. He served as president from 1999 until his death in 2013, leading the country as a central figure of the "Bolivarian Revolution." Chávez was first elected in 1998 and re-elected multiple times, overseeing major constitutional changes that established the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in 1999.
Nicolás Maduro, who was Chávez’s vice president, assumed the role of interim president following Chávez’s death and won a special presidential election in April 2013. Maduro has remained in power since, though his leadership has been marked by political crisis, economic collapse, and international controversy.
As of early January 2026, Maduro was captured by U.S. forces and taken to the United States, according to recent reports. Delcy Rodríguez, previously vice president, has assumed the role of interim president of Venezuela.
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › List_of_presidents_of_Venezuela
List of presidents of Venezuela - Wikipedia
4 days ago - The presidency was disputed between Juan Guaidó and Nicolás Maduro from January 2019 to 2023 during the Venezuelan presidential crisis. Maduro was elected to his first term in 2013 but received backlash from opposing Venezuelans and some members ...
president of Venezuela 2013 to 2026
Factsheet
President of Venezuela Incumbent
Vice President Himself
(March–April 2013)
Jorge Arreaza
(2013–2016)
Aristóbulo Istúriz
(2016–2017)
Tareck El Aissami
(2017–2018)
Delcy Rodríguez
(2018–2026)
(March–April 2013)
Jorge Arreaza
(2013–2016)
Aristóbulo Istúriz
(2016–2017)
Tareck El Aissami
(2017–2018)
Delcy Rodríguez
(2018–2026)
Preceded by Hugo Chávez
President of Venezuela Incumbent
Vice President Himself
(March–April 2013)
Jorge Arreaza
(2013–2016)
Aristóbulo Istúriz
(2016–2017)
Tareck El Aissami
(2017–2018)
Delcy Rodríguez
(2018–2026)
(March–April 2013)
Jorge Arreaza
(2013–2016)
Aristóbulo Istúriz
(2016–2017)
Tareck El Aissami
(2017–2018)
Delcy Rodríguez
(2018–2026)
Preceded by Hugo Chávez
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Nicolás_Maduro
Nicolás Maduro - Wikipedia
1 hour ago - Prior to his presidency, he served as the vice president of Venezuela under President Hugo Chávez from 2012 to 2013, and as minister of foreign affairs from 2006 to 2012. Initially a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade union leader before being elected to the National Assembly in 2000.
Videos
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'US Marines Have Arrived': Venezuelans SCREAM As Trump's Troops ...
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Maduro’s Last Video? Venezuela President Appears On Camera Just ...
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Nicolas Maduro’s Journey From Bus Driver To Venezuela President ...
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Nicolas Maduro: From bus driver to president of Venezuela - YouTube
What did Hugo Chávez do?
Hugo Chávez served as president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013. He styled himself as the leader of the “Bolivarian Revolution,” a socialist political program whose key elements included nationalism, a centralized economy, and a strong military actively engaged in public projects; it became known to many as simply chavismo.
britannica.com
britannica.com › politics, law & government › world leaders › presidents & heads of states
Hugo Chavez | Death, Maduro, Coup, & Facts | Britannica
What did Hugo Chávez accomplish?
Supporters of Hugo Chávez credit his administration with creating successful education programs, increasing access to health care, lowering unemployment, and reducing poverty in Venezuela. His opponents blamed him for shortages of basic foods, high inflation, a stubbornly high infant mortality rate, and weakening democracy.
britannica.com
britannica.com › politics, law & government › world leaders › presidents & heads of states
Hugo Chavez | Death, Maduro, Coup, & Facts | Britannica
What was Hugo Chávez’s early life like?
Hugo Chávez grew up in Sabaneta, a small town in southwestern Venezuela. He was the second of six surviving children, all boys. His parents, both schoolteachers, could not support all their children, so Hugo and his eldest brother were raised in Barinas by their grandmother, who instilled in Hugo a love of history and politics.
britannica.com
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Hugo Chavez | Death, Maduro, Coup, & Facts | Britannica
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › President_of_Venezuela
President of Venezuela - Wikipedia
6 days ago - On 3 January 2026, the United States captured then-president Nicolás Maduro, as well as his wife Cilia Flores, and extracted them from the country. As a result, Delcy Rodríguez became the acting president. Rodríguez is the current acting president. As a self described republic with a ...
NYTimes
nytimes.com › world › americas
Splits Emerge Among Venezuelans as Revolutionary Dream Fades - The New York Times
1 day ago - When Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, gave her first State of the Union address last week, she maintained a delicate balance between anti-American rhetoric and the new reality.
Inter-American Dialogue
thedialogue.org › analysis › venezuela-a-veinte-anos-de-chavez
Venezuela, 20 years after Chavez – Inter-American Dialogue
Chavez’s leadership and the shipment ... of any condemnation of Venezuela in the Organization of American States. Thanks to that legacy, part of the Latin American left still refuses to condemn the Maduro regime. Just days before he became president in 1999, Hugo Chavez was ...
Kiddle
kids.kiddle.co › List_of_presidents_of_Venezuela
List of presidents of Venezuela facts for kids
Since January 10, 2019, the presidency has been a topic of disagreement between Juan Guaidó and Nicolás Maduro. This is part of the ongoing Venezuelan presidential crisis. Maduro was first elected in 2013.
University of Central Arkansas
uca.edu › politicalscience › home › research-projects › dadm-project › western-hemisphere-region › venezuela-1913-present
15. Venezuela (1913-present)
On August 18, 2017, the NCA voted unanimously to assume the powers of the National Assembly. The Canadian government imposed economic sanctions (assets freezes and travel bans) against President Maduro and 39 other Venezuelans on September 22, 2017. Regional elections were held on October 15, 2017, and the ruling Great Patriotic Pole (GPP) won 18 out of 23 governorships throughout the country.
Encyclopedia Britannica
britannica.com › politics, law & government › world leaders › presidents & heads of states
Hugo Chavez | Death, Maduro, Coup, & Facts | Britannica
September 18, 2003 - Hugo Chavez was president of Venezuela (1999–2013) who styled himself as the leader of the socialist Bolivarian Revolution.
Fox News
foxnews.com › world › maduros-presumed-successor-venezuelan-vice-president-delcy-rodriguez-possibly-in-russia-report
Maduro's presumed successor, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, is possibly in Russia: report
Maduro previously served as Venezuela’s vice president before he took power in 2013 following the death of then-leader Hugo Chávez.
Published 2 weeks ago
Reuters
reuters.com › world › americas › whos-really-running-venezuela-2026-01-13
Who’s really running Venezuela? | Reuters
1 week ago - Who she is: Venezuela’s top opposition leader and Nobel Prize laureate · Portfolio: Machado has spent her career trying to unseat the ruling party and decrying abuses by Maduro’s government, which accuses her of treason. Why she matters: Machado swept the opposition primary ahead of the 2024 presidential elections before Maduro’s government barred her from running in the general election.
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Presidency_of_Nicolás_Maduro
Presidency of Nicolás Maduro - Wikipedia
1 day ago - On 14 April 2013, Nicolás Maduro was elected President of Venezuela, narrowly defeating opposition candidate Henrique Capriles with just a popular vote lead of 1.5%. Capriles immediately demanded a recount, refusing to recognize the outcome ...
Encyclopedia Britannica
britannica.com › politics, law & government › world leaders › presidents & heads of states
Nicolas Maduro | Biography, Facts, Capture, & Presidency | Britannica
April 9, 2013 - Nicolas Maduro is a politician who succeeded Hugo Chavez as president of Venezuela in 2013 upon Chavez’s death. As world oil prices fell and the collapse of the Venezuelan economy was accompanied by widespread shortages of food and medicine, ...
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Hugo_Chávez
Hugo Chávez - Wikipedia
1 day ago - Chávez and his supporters later founded a political party, the Fifth Republic Movement (MVR – Movimiento Quinta República) in July 1997 to support Chávez's candidacy in the 1998 presidential election. Chávez went on a tour around the country. On his tours, he met Marisabel Rodríguez, who would give birth to their daughter shortly before becoming his second wife in 1997. At the start of the election run-up, front runner Irene Sáez was backed by one of Venezuela's two primary political parties, Copei.
NBC News
nbcnews.com › politics › donald-trump › us-venezuela-strike-nicolas-maduro-captured-how-timeline-trump-rcna252041
How the U.S. captured Maduro in Venezuela: A CIA team, steel doors and a fateful phone call
As early as August, the CIA quietly sent a small unit into Venezuela with the goal of providing “extraordinary insight” into Maduro’s movements, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Even his pets were known to U.S. intelligence agents, Dan “Raizin” Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at the news conference Saturday. Elite troops trained for months, going so far as to use a replica of the presidential compound based on intelligence that the U.S.
Published 5 days ago
WorldAtlas
worldatlas.com › articles › presidents-of-venezuela-since-1953.html
Who is the President of Venezuela?
April 11, 2019 - In 2006 he was appointed to be the foreign minister. In 2012, the then-President Hugo Chavez appointed him as the vice president. After the death of the president in 2013, he served as the interim president.
BBC
bbc.com › news › articles › cvgjn5yyeljo
CIA director had two-hour meeting with new Venezuelan leader in Caracas
The meeting also happened on the same day that Trump met opposition leader Maria Corina Machado in Washington, who presented the US president with her Nobel Peace Prize winning medal. In her state of the union address, Rodríguez told Venezuelans it was "very difficult" to deliver Maduro's annual report, saying that the two were working on the speech together until six hours before his seizure on 3 January.
Published 4 days ago
Daily Mail
dailymail.co.uk › news › article-15433043 › Venezuela-interim-leader-Delcy-Rodriguez-Maduro-Trump.html
Venezuela's new leader Delcy Rodriguez is hardline socialist who kept Maduro in power for years... and she's already making threats against Trump | Daily Mail Online
2 weeks ago - As the foreign minister, she fiercely defended far-left Maduro's image amid international scrutiny for violating human rights and threatening democracy. She also accused governments of the United Nations of trying to undermine Venezuela in this role. In 2017, Rodriguez became the president of the Constituent National Assembly, which expanded the government's powers following the opposition party's 2015 victory in the legislative elections.
Reuters
reuters.com › world › americas › venezuelas-new-leader-facing-internal-division-moves-tighten-her-grip-power-2026-01-17
Venezuela's new leader, facing internal division, moves to tighten her grip on power | Reuters
3 days ago - Officials in the Trump administration had contact with Cabello months before the operation to seize Maduro and have also been in communication with him since, four sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, warning him against using the security services or colectivos to target the opposition. Cabello, who was jailed in Venezuela for backing eventual socialist President Hugo Chavez in a failed 1992 coup, is under indictment in the U.S.
BBC
bbc.com › news › articles › ce8gen8nnvlo
Venezuela swears in interim leader after Maduro appears in court
2 weeks ago - Judge Alvin Hellerstein, 92, interjected to tell Maduro that there would be a "time and a place to get into all of this". Who is Venezuela's new interim president, Delcy Rodríguez?
Encyclopedia Britannica
britannica.com › geography & travel › countries of the world
Venezuela - The presidency of Nicolás Maduro | Britannica
July 26, 1999 - Venezuela - The presidency of Nicolás Maduro: The death of Chávez elevated Vice Pres. Nicolás Maduro to the presidency. A special election to choose a president to serve out the remainder of Chávez’s six-year term was held on April 14 between Maduro, who Chávez had indicated was his ...