OPINION/VIDEO | This week, senior columnist Yihun Stith sits down with David Smolansky, the former deputy director of Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado’s presidential campaign. Multiple independent organizations have backed Smolansky and the opposition’s claims that they won last year’s election against Nicolás Maduro. A leading figure in Venezuela’s opposition movement, Smolansky now runs Machado’s office in Washington.
Once a student activist, Smolansky rose to national prominence as one of the youngest mayors of El Hatillo in Caracas in 2013. In this role he earned praise for improving public safety and government transparency. His vocal opposition to Maduro’s regime eventually forced him into exile in the United States.
In this interview, Smolansky faces tough questions: Does his movement receive financial backing from the United States? Are claims of foreign influence and terrorist activity in Venezuela, from Hezbollah to Washington, grounded in reality? What role would Smolansky play if the opposition were to come to power?
Interview by Yihun Stith
Filmed by Marian Caballo
Edited by Marian Caballo
Marian Caballo is a senior editor on the 143rd editorial board and was the multimedia and data science editor on the 142nd and 141st editorial boards. Marian also served as an assistant news editor. She is a member of the Class of 2026 in the College of Arts and Sciences. You can reach her at mcaballo@cornellsun.com.
Yihun Stith '26 is an Opinion Columnist and a Computer Science and Government student in the College of Arts & Sciences. His fortnightly column, Stand Up, Fight Back, explores the political structures and power dynamics that shape life at Cornell. Through analysis, critique, and calls to action, the column challenges Cornellians to engage with the world beyond the campus bubble and to fight for a more just and accountable university. He can be reached at ystith@cornellsun.com.
