Donald Trump says Venezuela's embattled opposition leader must be protected, as President Nicolas Maduro prepares to take the oath again after allegedly stealing an election.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is set to be sworn in for a third term on Friday amid protests and international calls for him to stand aside.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro, in office since 2013, is due to take the oath of office for a third term Friday despite a global outcry that brought thousands out in protest on the ceremony's eve.

With his challengers scattered and reeling, Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro is set to be sworn in for a third six-year term on Friday, shrugging off international condemnation of a sham election and a brutal crackdown on dissent.

President Nicolás Maduro will extend his increasingly repressive rule over Venezuela until 2031 when he is sworn in on Friday, despite credible evidence that his opponent won the latest election and following protests against his plan to serve a third six-year term.

Opponents of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro took to the streets in their thousands Thursday in a last-ditch protest against his swearing-in for a third six-year term as president. Attempts by Trump to force Maduro out during his first term as US president by recognizing a parallel opposition-led government and imposing sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector came to naught.

President Nicolás Maduro will extend his increasingly repressive rule over Venezuela until 2031 when he is sworn in on Friday, despite credible evidence that his opponent won the latest election and following protests against his plan to serve a third six-year term.