Delcy Rodríguez's Rise from Student to Venezuela's

Delcy Rodríguez became Venezuela's interim president two days after U.S. Special forces abducted her predecessor, Nicolás Maduro, on January 3. Former U.S. President Donald Trump discarded elected opposition leader María Corina Machado to back Rodríguez, Maduro's vice-president, solidifying her unlikely hold on power eight months later.

Rodríguez's political journey began over two decades ago. In April 2002, after a coup briefly toppled Hugo Chávez, the 32-year-old junior diplomat, studying in London, acted as a fixer for two BBC journalists. She was determined to get Chávez's story out on a major platform. Meirion Jones, one of the journalists, says she looked like a student then, making it impossible to imagine her future presidency. By the trip's end, Jones believed Rodríguez was starting to see a political opening for herself in Venezuela.

A Political Ascent

Rodríguez returned to Venezuela, securing roles at the state oil company PDVSA and the foreign ministry. Her father, Jorge Antonio Rodríguez, a Marxist activist who died in police custody in 1976, gave her a legacy within Chavista circles, but she was initially unknown personally. By 2006, she was Chávez's chief of staff, though a clash with an ambassador in Moscow temporarily sidelined her. Nicolás Maduro rehabilitated her after Chávez's 2013 death. As Venezuela descended into economic crisis, Rodríguez ascended rapidly, serving as foreign minister, petroleum minister, finance minister, and finally vice-president.

The Sibling Alliance

Her rise created a powerful family alliance. Her brother, Jorge Rodríguez, a psychiatrist turned politician, leads the national assembly. After Maduro's capture, they formed a ruling triumvirate with interior minister Diosdado Cabello. Andrés Izarra, Chávez's former communication minister, notes the siblings operate in tandem. "Delcy is not Delcy. Delcy's Delcy and her brother. They don't do anything without each other's approval or consent," Izarra says.

Contrasting Portraits

Those who have encountered Rodríguez paint starkly different pictures. Admirers see a pragmatic, witty workaholic. Greg Palast, the other BBC journalist from the 2002 trip, credits her with helping curb hyperinflation and believes she can revive Venezuela's oil industry. "Venezuela under Delcy is going to have the best possible kind of technocratic care," Palast says, calling her a clever strategist.

Detractors view her as a belligerent, power-hungry chameleon. A prominent anonymous opposition politician calls the Rodríguez siblings "evil geniuses." Izarra describes her as "very machiavellian" with a taste for luxury. Tom Shannon, a retired U.S. Diplomat, recalls a 2015 meeting in Caracas where Rodríguez, then foreign minister, reacted with contempt when he raised human rights. She cited her father's torture and killing by security services during a period the U.S. Considered democratic, indicating this history remains a guiding force.

The Trump Partnership

Trump's support is central to Rodríguez's current position. He praised her after announcing a major oil deal, calling it "the biggest oil deal in world history." "We are very happy with the president-elect that we have right now," Trump said of the unelected leader. He argued Venezuela, freshly out of a "very nasty" regime, was not ready for elections. Former Turkish diplomat Imdat Oner believes the deal strengthened Rodríguez, predicting she could stay in power for four or five more years. "Delcy wants to survive," Oner says. "And she knows that if she gives enough to the Trump administration, the Trump administration will allow her to stay in power." Shannon interprets her objective as political survival and preventing the return of a conservative opposition.