On 30 April 2019, during the Venezuelan presidential crisis, a group of several dozen military personnel and civilians joined Juan Guaidó in his call for the removal of Nicolás Maduro as part of what he labeled "Operation Freedom" (Spanish: Operación Libertad). Reuters reported an "uneasy peace" by the afternoon of 30 April. During the unrest, opposition leader Leopoldo López was freed from house arrest after being imprisoned for five years. Manuel Cristopher Figuera, the head of the Bolivarian Intelligence Service, denounced the Maduro government and was dismissed from his position before going into hiding. At least 25 military men who opposed Maduro sought asylum at the Brazilian embassy in Caracas.

In a joint statement, the Lima Group shared support for Guaidó and called for Maduro's exit. Maduro, along with some academics and media outlets, described the actions of Guaidó and his allies as an attempted coup d'état, while other media organizations described the actions as an uprising. Maduro expelled 54 members from the military and the head of intelligence who publicly backed Guaidó. Guaidó's efforts to persuade senior military officials to join his movement failed, with Guaidó stating that going forward, protests would be held every day until Maduro stepped down from power. Guaidó called for his supporters and the country's armed forces to take to the streets again the following day.

By 2 May, four people were killed in the ensuing clashes between opposition protesters and militants on one side, and pro-government protesters and the Venezuelan armed forces on the other. Some National Assembly members had their immunity lifted and were indicted afterwards; several of those indicted, while others went into hiding. Additionally, the National Assembly vice-president Edgar Zambrano was later arrested.

A power struggle concerning who is the legitimate President of Venezuela began on 10 January 2019, when the opposition-majority National Assembly declared that incumbent Nicolás Maduro's 2018 re-election was invalid; that the office of the President of Venezuela was therefore vacant; and declared its president, Juan Guaidó, to be acting president of the nation. As of May 2019, Guaidó has been recognized as the interim president of Venezuela by 54 countries, including the United States and most nations of Latin America and Europe. Internationally, support has followed usual geopolitical lines: Russia, China, Iran, Syria, Turkey, and Cuba support Maduro, while the United States, Canada, and most of Europe and Latin America support Guaidó as interim president.

The process and results of the May 2018 Venezuelan presidential election were widely disputed. The National Assembly declared Maduro illegitimate on the day of his second inauguration, citing the 1999 Constitution of Venezuela enacted under Hugo Chávez, Maduro's predecessor; in response, the pro-Maduro Supreme Tribunal of Justice said the National Assembly's declaration was unconstitutional. Minutes after Maduro took the oath as president of Venezuela on 10 January 2019, the Organization of American States (OAS) approved a resolution in a special session of its Permanent Council declaring Maduro's presidency illegitimate and urging new elections. Special meetings of the OAS on 24 January and in the United Nations Security Council on 26 January were held but no consensus was reached. Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres called for dialogue.

Maduro's government states that the crisis is a "coup d'état led by the United States to topple him and control the country's oil reserves". Guaidó denies the coup allegations, saying peaceful volunteers back his movement.

On 21 January 2019, a small-scale attempted military mutiny occurred in the Cotiza neighborhood, Caracas, where 27 military officials kidnapped security and stole weapons, trying to march on Miraflores, who fought against and were apprehended by authorities in the early hours. People in the local area continued the fight, protesting and burning things in the street even as tear gas was deployed.

Guaidó announced on 16 March 2019 that he would embark on a tour of the country to organize committees for what he called "Operation Freedom" with the goal to claim the presidential residence, Miraflores Palace. From the first rally in Carabobo state, he said, "We will be in each state of Venezuela and for each state we have visited the responsibility will be yours, the leaders, the united, [to] organize ourselves in freedom commands."