Mass protests after controversial election results in Venezuela
Venezuelan President Denies Election Criticism as Coup Attempt. Opposition Claims Clear Victory. Thousands Protest, Police Respond with Tear Gas. One Death Reported.
The opposition in Venezuela stands against authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro following the controversial presidential election. Opposition leader María Corina Machado claimed their candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia, won the Sunday vote decisively. Beforehand, Venezuela's electoral board officially declared Maduro the winner.
Protests against Maduro erupted in the capital, Caracas. "She will fall, she will fall, this government will fall," chanted protesters in the Petare slum. They blocked streets and set up barricades on fire, as seen on the NTN24 TV channel. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters. Videos showed men in civilian clothes shooting pistols towards protesters.
A non-governmental organization reported one death during the protests. Alfredo Romero, head of the human rights organization Foro Penal, tweeted that 46 people were arrested.
The opposition called for a mass demonstration against the government. "We are determined to defend the truth and ensure every vote is counted," said Machado. The ruling party also plans to mobilize its supporters. Parliamentary President Jorge Rodríguez called on Maduro's supporters to march to the Miraflores presidential palace.
Machado claimed her camp had 73.2% of the Sunday ballots confirming their victory. Opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia won in all states and received 6.27 million votes, while Maduro got 2.7 million, according to official results. "Our triumph is historic," said González.
Landslide Opposition Victory?
Official results showed Maduro with 51.2% of the votes, extending his term until 2031. González Urrutia had 44.2%. Independent post-election polls suggested a landslide opposition victory. Maduro dismissed opposition and pollster concerns as a coup attempt.
Meanwhile, opposition members reported an attempt by security forces to storm the Argentine embassy in Caracas, where six opposition figures are staying. "Security forces are trying to storm the Argentine embassy residence in Caracas, where the six campaign asylum seekers of Machado and Edmundo González are located," wrote Pedro Urruchurtu, one of the six, on Twitter. They sought asylum in March to avoid arrest for alleged conspiracy.
Venezuela's Attorney General Tarek William Saab accused the opposition of hacking the electoral board. The cyberattack was launched from North Macedonia and targeted the result transmission, said Saab. The attempt to manipulate results failed. Saab blamed opposition leader María Corina Machado and two other prominent Venezuelan government opponents abroad. He announced that the National Electoral Council will soon publish the results of individual voting stations on its website.
Criticism from abroad follows.
Criticism and doubts about the election results were also loud abroad: "We have noted the announcement of the electoral authorities as well as the concerns expressed by political actors and members of the international community," said the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Guterres, Stéphane Dujarric. The Secretary-General called for "full transparency" and for the election results to be published in a way that is broken down by polling station. Similarly, EU High Representative Josep Borrell expressed himself.
In a joint statement, the Latin American countries Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay called for a "complete review of the results in the presence of independent election observers." Panama also announced that it would withdraw diplomats from Venezuela.
After criticism of the election process in Venezuela, the Maduro government announced that it would withdraw its diplomatic personnel from seven countries in the region, including Panama, Argentina, and Chile. Foreign Minister Yvan Gil called on the affected countries to also recall their diplomats from Venezuela.
The Federal Foreign Office in Berlin stated on its English-language X-account that the "announced election results do not dispel doubts about the counting of votes in Venezuela." The ministry also called for "the publication of detailed results for all polling stations and access to all voting and election documents for the opposition and observers." The USA and the UK also expressed doubts.
Other countries express concerns over the election results, joining the international community in calling for transparency. Various nations, including Argentina, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic, have suggested a comprehensive review of the election results with independent observers present.
