Organization of American States criticizes Maduro for elections in Venezuela and calls for new elections
One day after the official results of the presidential election in Venezuela were published, criticism of incumbent Nicolás Maduro is growing. The Organization of American States (OAS) has urged Maduro to cease the ongoing repression of the opposition by his government and criticized the pro-government National Electoral Council for delaying the announcement of detailed results.
"The worst and most despicable form of repression is preventing the people from finding solutions through elections," the OAS stated. Venezuelan institutions must ensure freedom, justice, and transparency in the electoral process. The organization, which has called an emergency meeting of its members to assess the election results, has proposed a new election to clarify the vastly different results presented by the election boards and the opposition on Monday. However, any repeat election must be internationally observed.
Thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets nationwide on Monday to protest the official election results. Opposition candidate Edmundo González declared that his team had collected sufficient evidence to prove his victory.
González and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado stated that they had reviewed over 70 percent of the ballots from Sunday's election, showing that González had received more than twice as many votes as Maduro. Both urged their supporters to remain calm and invited them to gather peacefully on Tuesday. A demonstration was expected to take place outside the United Nations offices in the capital, Caracas.
The protesters expressed their doubts about the validity of the election results, citing discrepancies between the vote counts. The international scrutiny of a potential re-election is necessary to alleviate these doubts and ensure a fair process.
