Venezuela’s Supreme Court has ordered Vice President Delcy Rodriguez to serve as interim President following the U.S. removal of President Nicolas Maduro from office.
The Court ruled that Rodriguez should “assume and exercise, in an acting capacity, all the attributes, duties and powers inherent to the office of President… to guarantee administrative continuity and the comprehensive defense of the nation.” The decision does not declare Maduro permanently absent, a step that would require elections within 30 days.
Delcy Rodriguez is a lawyer who graduated from the Central University of Venezuela in 1993 and has also served as a professor there. She previously led the Venezuelan Association of Labour Lawyers union.
Rodriguez began her governmental career in 2003 within the General Coordination of the Vice Presidency. She served as Minister for Presidential Affairs from February to August 2006 under President Hugo Chavez. In 2013, Maduro appointed her as Minister of Popular Power for Communication and Information, a post she held until October 2014. Later that year, she became Venezuela’s first female Minister of Popular Power for Foreign Relations (Chancellor).
In June 2016, Maduro awarded her the Military Order of National Defence, Commander Degree, First Class. She resigned in 2017 to contest elections for the National Constituent Assembly and was appointed Vice President of Venezuela in June 2018, succeeding Tareck El Aissami. She later served as Minister of Popular Power for Economy and Finance starting September 2020.
Delcy Rodriguez has faced sanctions from several countries and is banned from entering neighboring Colombia.
