Opposition leader María Corina Machado named Professor Corina Yoris as her successor in the 2024 presidential election campaign.

Maria Corina Machadothe opposition leader in Venezuela’s upcoming presidential election, has voiced her support for a replacement candidate as she continues to face a ban on running.

She appointed the 80-year-old historian and professor Corina Yoris as her successor Race on July 28th.

The announcement was made on Friday during the presidential administration Nicolas Maduro has been internationally condemned for his alleged pressure campaign against Machado.

Earlier in the day, the US State Department issued one opinion She condemns the arrests of people close to Machado, including two members of her campaign: Dignora Hernandez and Henry Alviarez.

“The decision by Maduro and his representatives to arrest two members of the leading opposition candidate’s campaign team and issue arrest warrants for seven others represents a disturbing escalation of repression against Venezuela’s opposition parties,” spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

“We continue to demand the immediate release of all political prisoners.”

Alviarez was national coordinator for Machado’s liberal party, Vente Venezuela. Hernandez, meanwhile, was the party’s political secretary.

Both were arrested on Wednesday on charges of conspiracy and alleged incitement to violence.

Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab described them as participants in plans to attack military facilities and other acts aimed at “destabilizing” the country.

Arrest warrants were issued against other party members, including Machado’s close confidante Magalli Meda, on similar charges.

But Machado has called all allegations “completely false” and international observers warned Maduro’s government against attempts to derail the opposition.

The Chilean Foreign Ministry, for example, described the arrests as “an action that contradicts the democratic spirit that should prevail in any electoral process.”

Human rights organizations have long accused Maduro and his allies of using government troops to violently crush the opposition, including through arbitrary arrests and torture.

Machado, a former member of the Venezuelan National Assembly, was himself barred from holding public office in the country.

In June, the comptroller announced she was barred from running for public office for 15 years because of her support for U.S. sanctions.

But at the time, Machado was, and ultimately was, the leading candidate for the opposition primaries won this race in October.

An estimated 2.4 million Venezuelans Voted in the primaries to determine an opponent for Maduro.

Early results showed Machado winning over 93 percent of the primary vote, a landslide. She has long been considered the favorite to run against Maduro, who is seeking a third six-year term.

The October opposition primaries came as Maduro’s government accepted a deal, the so-called Barbados Agreement, to hold a competitive presidential election in 2024 under the watchful eye of international observers.

In return, the US relaxed certain sanctions on the condition that the agreement was adhered to. It’s been that way ever since reintroduced some of these sanctions after a Venezuelan court confirmed Machado’s ban in January.

But Machado remained under the ban even after the Barbados Agreement. And on Monday the opposition had to name a candidate for the presidential election.

“We are determined to move forward and do what needs to be done to stay on this path and fulfill the mandate – the mandate of almost three million Venezuelans achieved on October 22 with the glorious primaries,” said Machado in a press conference on Friday.

For her part, Yoris thanked Machado for her trust.