Venezuela's new interim president is the daughter of a socialist who was arrested in connection with the 1976 kidnapping of an American businessman | Fortune

"As uncertainty simmers in Venezuela, interim President Delcy Rodríguez has taken the place of her ally President Nicolás Maduro, captured by the United States in a nighttime military operation, and offered "to collaborate" with the Trump administration in what could be a seismic shift in relations between the adversary governments. Rodríguez served as Maduro's vice president since 2018, overseeing much of Venezuela's oil-dependent economy and its feared intelligence service, and was next in the presidential line of succession."

"She's part of a band of senior officials in Maduro's administration that now appears to control Venezuela, even as U.S. President Donald Trump and other officials say they will pressure the government to fall in line with its vision for the oil-rich nation. On Saturday, Venezuela's high court ordered her to assume the role of interim president, and the leader was backed by Venezuela's military."

"Her rise to become interim leader of the South American country came as a surprise on Saturday morning, when Trump announced that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been in communication with Rodríguez and that the Venezuelan leader was "gracious" and would work with the American government. Rubio said Rodríguez was someone the administration could work with, unlike Maduro. But in a televised address,"

Delcy Rodríguez assumed the interim presidency after Nicolás Maduro was captured by the United States and received backing from Venezuela's high court and military. Rodríguez served as vice president since 2018, overseeing much of the country's oil-dependent economy and its feared intelligence service, and stood next in the line of succession. The Trump administration and Secretary of State Marco Rubio reported communication with Rodríguez and suggested she might cooperate with the U.S. Rodríguez publicly denounced U.S. actions as violations of international law, labeled the U.S. government "extremists," and affirmed Maduro as the rightful leader, producing uncertainty over future relations.

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