Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela's former president who once called himself “the people's protector,” is being wiped from public life after US special forces overthrew him in January 2026. Billboards featuring his trademark goatee are being painted over, murals praising him are whitewashed, and in official statements, Maduro's name has all but disappeared.
For years, Maduro's image was ubiquitous—on propaganda billboards, even a “Super Moustache” action figure, and silhouettes on trash cans, garbage trucks, and overpasses. Now, just five months after he was abducted (as supporters call it) and taken to New York for trial, the personality cult is collapsing.
In a vast housing complex in central Caracas, once a stronghold of the regime, murals glorifying Maduro have been painted over with white. Locals say they were surprised to see the drawings in front of banks and pharmacies vanish. On the highway to Guatire, Maduro's name on a 2024 election billboard is nearly faded. In Caucagua, someone used cement to smear Maduro's portrait in a public playground, partly obscuring his face.
The erasure of Maduro's symbols is also evident in official language. According to an analysis by Venezuelan news outlet TalCual, interim leader Delcy Rodríguez—once Maduro's vice president and close ally—mentioned his name 86 times immediately after the US raid; by March, that number dropped to just 7 times, a decline of over 90%. TalCual asks: “What remains of a leader when his name is no longer uttered?”
Political commentator Phil Gunson, based in Caracas, says this forgetting reflects the reality that Maduro alienated not only the opposition but his own movement. Under Maduro, Venezuela's economy shrank by 70%, and millions fled the country. Gunson argues that most Chavistas also wanted Maduro gone. Additionally, public irritation with Maduro's singing and dancing on national television contributed to his unpopularity.
Still, some embers of support remain. At a pro-regime rally near the Caracas botanical garden, a woman held an action figure of Maduro styled as a superhero and a Wonder Woman figure of his wife, Cilia Flores. Another supporter, Wendell Gouveia, wore a red T-shirt with a pop-art image of Maduro, accusing former US President Donald Trump of unjust kidnapping. However, most of the thousands of protesters wore white instead of the traditional Chavista red, and signs bearing Maduro's name or face were rare.
On the highway connecting Caracas to the international airport, a yellow-and-green mural reading “Free Maduro and Cilia” has been sprayed over with black paint—a testament to the deep divisions in Venezuelan society.
