In January this year, when former Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro was ousted, optimism swept Venezuela. Banners thanking the United States hung in the streets, and U.S. President Donald Trump at one point recorded an approval rating of more than 70% in Venezuela. But within just a few months, the mood changed.
The Financial Times (FT) reported on the 14th that as change has progressed more slowly than expected, disappointment with President Trump is growing among Venezuelans. His approval rating is also plunging. According to local polls, Trump's approval rating was shown to have declined by nearly 20 to 30 percentage points in just two months. In a survey by pollster Meganalisis, approval fell to 47% in April from 75% in March, and in surveys by Atlas Intel and Bloomberg, it was shown to have declined to 45% in May from 53% in February.
FT said, "Contrary to the U.S. government's claim that Venezuela's economy is stabilizing after Maduro's ouster, local residents are not feeling changes in their daily lives." Oscar Montero, a taxi driver in Caracas, told FT, "They say oil income has increased, but for ordinary people like us, nothing has changed," adding, "I don't feel the economy has improved."
On Jan. 1, when a U.S.-led military operation resulted in Maduro's arrest, great expectations spread through Venezuelan society. The United States partially eased sanctions it had imposed on the Maduro regime and allowed Venezuela to resume crude oil exports. Hundreds of political prisoners were released, and anti-government protests could be held more freely than before. Trump recently said, "Venezuela has become a happy country," emphasizing economic recovery, but on the ground there is no small number of voices that do not agree with that assessment.
The actual economic situation remains severe. According to the Central Bank of Venezuela, last month's annual inflation rate exceeded 500%. The statutory minimum wage is 130 bolivars per month, which is less than $1. Even with government subsidies added, monthly income is around $240. By contrast, local unions estimate that the food cost needed for a family of five to get by for a month exceeds $730. That is why protests demanding a minimum wage increase have continued across Venezuela in recent months.
Although the oil industry shows signs of recovery, the benefits felt by Venezuelans are limited, FT assessed. According to Giovanni Martinez, vice president of state oil company PDVSA, Venezuela's crude output reached 1.2 million barrels a day at the end of last year, up 200,000 barrels from a year earlier. This year, it is expected to rise to 1.3 million barrels a day.
Oil revenue managed by the United States is also a point of contention. Washington says that after Maduro's ouster it has directly managed Venezuela's oil income and is using it for national reconstruction and welfare support. But Venezuelans complain that there has not been sufficient disclosure about where the funds are actually being spent.
The sluggish pace of political reform is also cited as a source of discontent. The United States promises to hold free elections, but has not presented a concrete timetable. According to human rights group Foro Penal, about 400 political prisoners are still incarcerated. FT noted that while Maduro is gone, much of the power structure and governing system he built remains intact.
Meanwhile, resentment has grown after President Trump recently even suggested that Venezuela could be incorporated as the 51st U.S. state. Even the pro-U.S. Rodríguez administration publicly pushed back, saying, "Venezuela is not a colony but a sovereign nation." FT assessed, "Immediately after Maduro's ouster, Venezuelans saw Trump as a savior, but months later, economic hardship and delays in political reform have turned expectations into disappointment."