President Nicolás Maduro has been declared the winner of Venezuela’s presidential election, according to partial results from the National Electoral Council (CNE). Elvis Amoroso, head of the CNE and an ally of Maduro, announced that with 80% of ballots counted, Maduro secured 51% of the vote, while his main rival, Edmundo González, had 44%.
The opposition rejected these results, calling them fraudulent. They claimed that González actually won with 70% of the votes, based on their own tallies and quick counts showing a significant lead over Maduro. Opposition parties had united behind González to unseat Maduro, who has been in power for 11 years. Pre-election opinion polls had indicated a strong lead for González.
This election result has broader implications beyond Venezuela, a country of 29.4 million people. Over the past decade, 7.8 million Venezuelans have fled due to economic and political crises under Maduro’s administration, and further emigration is expected if the situation does not improve. The election outcome is significant for countries in the region and the US, which has been dealing with increased immigration from Venezuela.
Venezuela’s vast oil reserves make its political direction crucial. Maduro blames US sanctions for the country’s economic problems and has formed alliances with China, Iran, and Russia. A new government might shift alliances, impacting Venezuela’s relationships with Cuba and other nations.
Many Venezuelans are seeking change after 25 years of PSUV party rule, first under Hugo Chávez and now Maduro. At polling stations in Caracas, voters expressed their desire for a new government, criticizing the current administration for the country’s hardships.
The opposition feared electoral fraud, recalling similar concerns from the 2018 election. They hoped their lead would be large enough to prevent any manipulation by the Maduro administration. Despite a high voter turnout, many opposition witnesses were reportedly forced to leave polling stations, preventing them from verifying the official results.
International reactions have been skeptical. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the UK Foreign Office expressed doubts about the legitimacy of the results. Chilean President Gabriel Boric called for transparency, and Uruguay’s president criticized the Maduro government’s conduct. Conversely, Maduro’s allies, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, congratulated him on his victory.
Maduro celebrated the result as a triumph of peace and stability, praising the election system and mocking his opponents. The opposition, which deployed thousands of witnesses to monitor the vote count, reported being obstructed in verifying the results. Voting in Venezuela involves electronic machines that print paper receipts, which are supposed to be verified by party witnesses, but access was limited.
