diff --git a/Modules/_ssl.c b/Modules/_ssl.c
index 48804ef920c..e116d3dd4d7 100644
--- a/Modules/_ssl.c
+++ b/Modules/_ssl.c
@@ -755,7 +755,7 @@ _get_peer_alt_names (X509 *certificate) {
 
     int i, j;
     PyObject *peer_alt_names = Py_None;
-    PyObject *v, *t;
+    PyObject *v = NULL, *t;
     X509_EXTENSION *ext = NULL;
     GENERAL_NAMES *names = NULL;
     GENERAL_NAME *name;