'Thank you Trump!': Why a Florida town is celebrating Nicolas Maduro's capture

Residents in Florida's town of 'Little Venezuela' are celebrating on the streets and thanking Donald Trump for the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

With the news of the capture and the rumours of a new President, people have come out to share how long they have dreamt of the day. In a conversation with the BBC, Florida resident Rosana Mateos said that she had a recurring dream about the fall of Maduro. "I always dreamt that I'd find out in the early hours of the morning," said the Venezuelan expat, who has been in the US since 2012. "We always figured that if something were to happen, it'd be around then."


As soon as she got to know about the incident that took place in the early hours of January 3, 2026, she joined the hundreds of Venezuelan expatriates and Venezuelan Americans who gathered in the Miami suburb of Doral, to rejoice.

Doral, which is the hub of South Florida's Venezuelan community has more than 40% residents that are of Venezuelan origin, the largest concentration in the US. Most fled their homes due to the economic troubles and insecurity after Maduro took office in 2013, while others fled while his predecessor and ally, Hugo Chavez was President.

From flags, signs, music, chants, horns and more, the celebrations expressed true joy.

The joy of losing Maduro

From economic to political, the struggles faced by Venezuelans under Maduro's regime seem to have sparked the relief of his loss among the people. Bryan Marquez, a native of the agricultural state of Tachira, Venezuela, emigrated two years ago to Florida. "I don't even know how to put it into words," he told the BBC. "We suffered under them [Maduro]. It was humiliating. That's why so many of us left. The economic situation was bad, and there was insecurity. We just wanted a better life."

And who do they thank for this welcome change? US President Donald Trump. "It's an indescribable feeling. He's really helped us... I don't know what to say, except thank you," added Marquez.

On Saturday, Trump said in a press conference that the US "is going to run" Venezuela through "a team that's working with the people of Venezuela to make sure that we have Venezuela right".

On Trump taking over the country, it seems some Venezuelans are hopeful. "Venezuela is one of the world's richest countries, in resources," he explained. "They [the US] are going to go in, restart the industry. The oil alone is worth billions, or trillions. It will help the country build up again," said 21-year-old Luis Atristain to the outlet.

Others, are in support of 2025 Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado, who is a part of the opposition in Venezuela, taking up the position. "They are dirty and corrupt. We support María Corina Machado, as well as [former opposition candidate] Edmundo González. That's what the Venezuelan people want, which we've already said at the ballot box," said Mateos.