Conspiracy theorists and MAGA influencers are claiming that the US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has nothing to do with oil or drug trafficking, but rather is linked to unfounded claims that the Venezuelan government rigged the 2020 election in favor of Joe Biden.
President Donald Trump and his administration appear to have boosted these conspiracy theories, sharing posts on his Truth Social platform about election fraud and posting about companies like Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic, another election company. These claims were continuously disproven following the 2020 election, including a settlement where Fox News paid Dominion almost $800 million to settle a defamation lawsuit.
However, across the internet, conspiracy theories about these voting companies are back, with election deniers claiming that Venezuela's government conspired with Smartmatic to steal elections and that this is partially why the US was compelled to invade Venezuela. Some even claim that Maduro's capture was Trump's final revenge for the alleged election theft of 2020.
Influencers such as QAnon promoter Jordan Sather have promoted these conspiracy theories, claiming that Venezuela was used to launder election rigging technology by the Deep State. Many of the same groups and influencers who emerged after the 2020 vote also quickly claimed Maduro's arrest was linked to vote-rigging, with some even promoting baseless claims about immigrant voting.
Despite no credible evidence being produced to back up these claims, election denial groups have persisted, mobilizing again ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. These denial groups are now using increased access to the Trump administration to promote their theories.
President Donald Trump and his administration appear to have boosted these conspiracy theories, sharing posts on his Truth Social platform about election fraud and posting about companies like Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic, another election company. These claims were continuously disproven following the 2020 election, including a settlement where Fox News paid Dominion almost $800 million to settle a defamation lawsuit.
However, across the internet, conspiracy theories about these voting companies are back, with election deniers claiming that Venezuela's government conspired with Smartmatic to steal elections and that this is partially why the US was compelled to invade Venezuela. Some even claim that Maduro's capture was Trump's final revenge for the alleged election theft of 2020.
Influencers such as QAnon promoter Jordan Sather have promoted these conspiracy theories, claiming that Venezuela was used to launder election rigging technology by the Deep State. Many of the same groups and influencers who emerged after the 2020 vote also quickly claimed Maduro's arrest was linked to vote-rigging, with some even promoting baseless claims about immigrant voting.
Despite no credible evidence being produced to back up these claims, election denial groups have persisted, mobilizing again ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. These denial groups are now using increased access to the Trump administration to promote their theories.
I'm so done with this whole mess. It's like some people have lost all sense of reality. First off, let's get one thing straight - just because we don't know everything about our governments' actions doesn't mean we can start spewing baseless conspiracy theories. And no, Maduro's capture has nothing to do with Trump's ego or a personal vendetta.
. Like, what's the point of even thinking Venezuela captured Maduro is about election rigging? That's just crazy talk 
. Trump's Truth Social platform share these conspiracy theories and ppl take it as fact 
. It's like, Maduro got captured 'cause Trump wanted revenge for 2020 election, yeah sure 
. What about all the people Maduro helped during the crisis in Venezuela? Do those gettin ignored too? 
. They're just companies that do voting tech, and Trump's just spreading baseless claims like they r real 
So I'm thinking, isn't it wild that conspiracy theorists are still peddling this stuff? Like, we've had multiple elections since 2020 and not one shred of credible evidence has come out to support these claims... 
. these conspiracy theorists, maga influencers and election deniers are basically creating this narrative of venezuela being involved in some kind of grand scheme with smartmatic or dominion voting systems... meanwhile, trump's administration is just handing them ammo 
. it's like they're trying to justify the invasion in their own warped minds, instead of actually looking at evidence and facts. the irony is that fox news paid out a massive sum to dominion almost 2 years ago already, but still these claims are circulating... it's like they're addicted to this conspiracy theory stuff 
. I'm surprised they haven't claimed that the Venezuelan government was behind 9/11 yet 
. Meanwhile, people are still swallowing this stuff like candy 
... it's just mind-boggling.
. Do we need to create some sort of "conspiracy theory debunking" squad 
? 
. I don't get why ppl can't move on from 2020 and focus on reality? The US invasion of Venezuela has nothing to do with election rigging 
. And now, Trump is fueling the fire by sharing these baseless claims on his platform 
. I mean, come on, didn't Fox News already pay out almost $800 million to settle a defamation lawsuit from Dominion? 
It's just not believable that Maduro's capture has nothing to do with oil or drug trafficking...and yet, ppl are still buying into it 
. The QAnon crowd is at it again, spreading wild conspiracy theories about the Deep State and Venezuela 
i mean i thought we were over this stuff by now but it seems like trump and his crew are just rehashing old conspiracy theories 
thinkin' about this whole situation, its like they wanna make u believe in a narrative thats as slippery as snake oil 
. see how easily conspiracy theorists latch onto unsubstantiated claims & amplify them, makin it hard to separate fact from fiction? that's when reality gets distorted, and next thing u know, we got entire nations gettin pulled into a cycle of mistrust & division 
. the real question is, what drives people to buy into these wild tales? is it fear, anger, or just plain ol' laziness when it comes to seekin out truth? whatever the reason, one thang's for sure: we gotta keep our critical thinkin' caps on & be vigilant against misinformation 
. It's not that hard. And what's up with Trump and his Truth Social platform being used to spread these conspiracy theories? Isn't he supposed to be the one who lost an election due to his own antics? 
.
. It's essential for critical thinkers to remain vigilant and scrutinize claims like these before accepting them as fact 
.