As the Donald Trump administration carried out an airstrike on Venezuela and arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who has long been identified as the head of a narcotics criminal organization, along with his spouse, global attention is focusing not only on Maduro himself but also on his wife, Cilia Flores, 70.
Flores, six years older than President Maduro, is seen as a figure who defies the usual category of a first lady. Before being the president's spouse, she was a political elite who directly penetrated the core of Venezuelan power, having held both legislative and judiciary authority under the Chávez system in the past.
Flores' political rise dates back to the early 1990s. She gained the trust of former President Hugo Chávez by serving as his attorney after his failed 1992 coup led to his imprisonment, and she quickly emerged as a key confidant. Around the same time, she also formed ties with Maduro, who came from the labor movement.
After the launch of the Chávez government, Flores' presence grew further. She served as National Assembly speaker from 2006 to 2011, and from 2012 to 2013 she was attorney general, taking control of the nation's judicial power. In the process, she is credited with institutionally consolidating the power base of the Chávez system. Maduro also entered the inner circle of power, focusing on diplomacy and labor.
Then, after Chávez died suddenly in 2013 and a by-election was held, Maduro won. In July of the same year, Maduro held a wedding with Flores. Both had previous marriages and children from those relationships. For that reason, many inside and outside Venezuela at the time interpreted it not as a simple marriage but as a "union of power."
Flores' stature strengthened further after Maduro took power. Maduro called her "my first combatant" instead of "first lady," and Flores accompanied him on key political schedules, playing a role in highlighting the legitimacy of the regime externally. At the same time, Western countries increased pressure by adding Flores and her associates to sanctions lists. During Trump's first term, she was also included in U.S. financial and visa sanctions.
Recently, the two have emphasized the image of a "normal national leaders couple" through social media and public appearances. In particular, after the United States deployed warships and troops around the Caribbean and ramped up military pressure, Maduro released a series of videos showing pro-government rallies, and Flores also appeared at official events.
But the arrests have rapidly changed the situation, and some say the very survival of the Maduro system could be shaken depending on the trial's outcome. The Maduro-Flores couple is expected to appear at the U.S. District Court in Manhattan as early as on the 5th on charges including conspiracy for narcoterrorism, and there is talk that they could be held at the Metropolitan Detention Center before trial.