Was Donald Trump Nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize?

Donald Trump has long made headlines for his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize, but he hasn’t been officially awarded it. The 2025 Nobel Peace Prize was instead given to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado for her work promoting democracy and peace in Venezuela.

The prize has reentered the spotlight in early 2026 following recent headlines involving Trump and Machado, prompting renewed curiosity about whether Trump was ever nominated — and how the Nobel Peace Prize selection process actually works.

Find out what we know about the selection process for the prize below.

Who Won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize?

Venezuelan politician María Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said in its October 2025 announcement.

“Maria Corina Machado meets all three criteria stated in Alfred Nobel’s will for the selection of a Peace Prize laureate,” the committee continued “She has brought her country’s opposition together. She has never wavered in resisting the militarization of Venezuelan society. She has been steadfast in her support for a peaceful transition to democracy.”

BREAKING NEWS
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the 2025 #NobelPeacePrize to Maria Corina Machado for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to… pic.twitter.com/Zgth8KNJk9

— The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 10, 2025

In response to Machado’s win, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung accused the Norwegian Nobel Committee of placing “politics over peace” in their decision.

“President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives,” Cheung tweeted. “He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will. The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace.” 

President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives.

He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will.

The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace. https://t.co/dwCEWjE0GE

— Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) October 10, 2025

In a high-profile political gesture in January 2026, Machado presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Trump at the White House, saying she wanted to recognize his role in supporting Venezuelan freedom — and in some interviews she even suggested she wished to share the award with him. However, the Norwegian Nobel Institute and Committee have repeatedly clarified that while the physical medal can be gifted, the title of Nobel Peace Prize laureate cannot be transferred, shared, or reassigned — meaning Trump is not an official Nobel Peace Prize winner.

How Does Anyone Win the Nobel Peace Prize?

The Norwegian Nobel Committee is responsible for voting. The nomination of a candidate is only acceptable when it’s submitted by a person that meets specific criteria. The necessary criteria includes members of national assemblies and governments, university professors, others who have been awarded with the prize and current and former members of the committee, according to the committee’s website.

Was Trump Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize?

There is no way of knowing whether or not Trump was nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize because the Norwegian Nobel Committee “does not confirm the names of nominees, neither to the media nor to the candidates themselves.” The list of nominees is released 50 years after the prize is awarded.

The committee revealed that there were 338 nominees for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, of which were 244 individuals and 94 were organizations.

Trump’s rumored nomination has been a major topic over the years. His 2016 presidential opponent, Hillary Clinton, said she’d nominate the Republican for the Nobel Peace Prize if he could end the war in Ukraine without granting Russia any territory.

“If we could pull that off, if President Trump were the architect of that, I’d nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, because my goal here is to not allow capitulation to Putin, aided and abetted by the United States,” Clinton said on the “Raging Moderates” podcast in August 2025. “I’m dreaming that for whatever combination of reasons, including the elusive Nobel Peace Prize, President Trump may actually stand up to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin on behalf of not just Ukraine and its democracy and its very brave people, but frankly, on behalf of our own security and interests.’