After months of obstacles from the opposition and doubts about the transparency of the vote the presidential election in Venezuela was held this Sunday. Hours later, both President Nicolás Maduro and his main opponent claimed victory in the vote.
Ahead of Sunday's election, expectations for change were high across the country. Venezuelans lined up in front of the polling centers as early as Saturday evening. After years of apathy, there was a sense of aspiration and hope in the air that drove large numbers of people to the polls, America's National Public Radio (NPR) noted.
Before the election
The presidential vote came after nearly a decade of socio-political crisis - hyperinflation, repression and violence - which saw more than 8 million citizens flee the country. During that time, Venezuela has experienced national protest movements and severe repression, numerous coup attempts and assassinations, and opposition efforts to form an internationally recognized parallel government outside the Maduro administration. Therefore, the elections were described as one of the biggest challenges to the power of the president, notes NOR.
The leader of the main political opposition, María Corina Machado, won the presidential primary in January, but authorities did not recognize the vote and the Maduro-backed Supreme Court barred her from putting her candidacy on the ballot. Months later, after unsuccessful attempts for other deputies, the opposition named a little-known diplomat as its candidate - Edmundo Gonzalez.
Machado continued to travel around the country - by car, as the authorities prohibited her from traveling by plane – and to gather large crowds even in the smallest towns promoting Gonzalez's campaign. The government was hot on her heels: blocking key roads and even detaining local restaurateurs who served her team. The authorities also planned Maduro rallies at the same time and place. Dozens of opposition activists have been arrested in recent months. Despite these tactics, Machado always managed to arrive - by car, motorcycle or foot - to meet the crowds. People stretched out their hands and shouted: “Help us, Mary!“, American radio recalls.
Due to the emigration of many Venezuelans, migration was brought to the fore during the election campaign. Maduro has accused politicians like Machado of supporting US sanctions against Venezuelan economic sectors and officials, which he says has forced many people to leave the country. For her part, the opposition leader raised the slogan “Volver a Casa“, (“Let's return home“), referring to the collective desire of the growing diaspora to return to their homeland if Maduro is removed from power.
After numerous negotiations, the president's government promised “fair and free elections”. In exchange for a transparent vote last October, the administration of US President Joe Biden lifted some of the sanctions against Venezuela, but then reimposed some of them after Maduro barred Machado from running, recalls “Foreign Policy”.
On election day
Attempts to swing the election in Maduro's favor began even before the polls opened on Sunday. According to a report by “Laboratorio de Paz“ (translated as “Laboratories of peace" - cooperation programs with the European Union in conflict zones in Colombia), published yesterday, during the election campaign at least 71 people were arbitrarily detained - most of them after they had rendered some kind of service of the opposition.
The government has also created significant obstacles for the millions of Venezuelans abroad to vote, including onerous passport and residency requirements. According to data published by the National Electoral Council (NIS), only 69,211 Venezuelans living abroad were eligible to vote.
Furthermore, only a very limited group of election observers was allowed to monitor the voting process. Venezuela has withdrawn its invitation to EU observers to be present in the country.
On election day, various local news agencies and journalists reported irregularities and voter intimidation tactics at polling stations across the country. In some of them the machines were declared damaged, in others armed pro-government groups were present and provoked the voters.
After the polls closed, scores of citizens who wanted to watch the counting of ballots were denied access to the polling stations, which were manned by riot police.
Is there a winner?
Shortly after midnight on Sunday against Monday, NIS announced an "irreversible victory" for Maduro – 51% with 80 percent of the ballots counted. According to the official results, which the opposition disputed, Gonzalez received 44% of the vote.
In his statement, Machado announced that the opposition candidate won with more than 70% of the vote and emphasized: “Edmundo Gonzalez won this election. We know that. We know it in every state. We know what happened today” and cited irregularities that called the results into question.
After the announcement of the official data, Maduro described his victory as a “triumph of peace, stability, republican ideals and ideas of equality”. “They have not been able to overcome the sanctions, they have not been able to overcome the aggression, the threats, now they cannot and will never be able to overcome the dignity of the Venezuelan people,” he said during his speech, referring to his political opponents.
The results announced by election authorities were met with mixed feelings in the capital Caracas, with Maduro supporters jubilant and celebrating outside the president's official residence. At the same time, opposition supporters were seen crying and hugging in the streets.
Today in Venezuela, demonstrations by supporters of both the ruling party and the opposition are planned, France 24 reported.
„My dear Venezuelans, tomorrow we gather as a family, organized, demonstrating the determination we have to make every vote count and defend the truth,” Maria Corina Machado urged her supporters in a post on the social network “Ex“ late last night.
Jorge Rodríguez, a ruling party lawmaker and head of Maduro's election campaign, also called on his supporters to take part in marches to the presidential palace to support the government.
Clashes between protesters and security forces were reported across the country yesterday, with tear gas fired to disperse the crowds and at least two people killed. In Coro, the capital of Falcon state, protesters toppled a statue of Maduro's “late mentor” Hugo Chavez, added France 24.
The non-governmental organization “Venezuelan Conflict Monitoring Center" reported more than 180 protests in 20 of the country's 23 states. "Numerous acts of repression and violence perpetrated by paramilitary groups and security forces have been reported," the statement said.
What's next?
If Maduro takes office, it will be his third consecutive six-year term and a continuation of “Chavismo” - the left-wing populist ideology named after Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez, commented CNN. Meanwhile, the opposition has promised to restore democracy in Venezuela and strengthen the economy if it wins the election.
This is not the first case in which the Maduro regime is suspected of falsifying the vote, reminds “Foreign Policies”. A software company that provided machine voting in the 2017 constitutional amendment referendum has accused the Maduro administration of altering at least one million votes to announce its passage.
If the president gives up power now, he could end up in prison, the publication commented. The United States has accused him of drug trafficking and terrorism, and the International Criminal Court is investigating his regime for crimes against humanity.
Instability in Venezuela may worsen depending on whether and how Maduro decides to deal with the opposition, writes "Foreign Polisi".
The international reaction
After the NIS announced Mtaduro's victory, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed “serious concern that the announced result does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people”. He added that it is “extremely important” that the votes be counted fairly and transparently, and called on the Electoral Council to publish the minutes with the voting results.
EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security Josep Borrell said that the will of the Venezuelan people “must be respected”. “Ensuring full transparency of the electoral process, including a detailed vote count and access to voting records at polling stations, is of vital importance,” he said in a statement posted on the X social network.
Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albarez also called on the electoral body to provide information on the vote in the interest of “respecting the democratic will” of the Venezuelan people, reported “Guardian“.
For his part, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he had “a lot of doubts” on Maduro's re-election. “We insist on verifiable results and access to the documents”, he wrote in “Ex“.
Britain, for its part, yesterday updated its travel advice and advised British citizens in the South American country to “stay at home if possible”. “The United Kingdom does not accept the legitimacy of the current administration installed by Nicolas Maduro”, said the British Office for Foreign Affairs, Public Relations and Development.
The results were met with mixed reactions in the region as well. The presidents of Peru, Chile, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Argentina and Uruguay have either condemned or questioned the results, with some saying they would not recognize them. Before the election, many Latin American leaders called on Maduro to commit to stepping down if he lost.
„The Maduro regime must understand that the results are hard to believe”, Chile's leftist president Gabriel Borich wrote on the social network “X”. “The international community and above all the Venezuelan people - including the millions of Venezuelans in exile - demand full transparency”, he added, stressing that his country “will not recognize any result that cannot be verified”.
Even more direct was the response of Luis Lacaille Pou, President of Uruguay. “Not this way! It was an open secret that they would “win”, whatever the actual results”, he wrote on the social network “X“.
Daniel Noboa, Ecuador's president, accused Maduro of trying to hang on to power and “tearing away the hope of millions of Venezuelans”. He also called on the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States to meet to discuss the situation in Venezuela. The meeting will be held tomorrow.
Argentina's populist and fiery president, Javier Millay, was even more insistent.
“Get out, Maduro, you are a dictator!!!“, he wrote in “X“. “Venezuelan people chose to end the communist dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro. The data show a crushing victory for the opposition and the world expects the defeat of the years of socialism, misery, decline and death to be recognized, Milley commented and expressed hope that Venezuela's armed forces will “protect democracy and the will of the people”.
But some of Venezuela's partners congratulated Maduro on his victory, including the presidents of Bolivia, Honduras and Cuba.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also joined in with a congratulatory address. “Russian-Venezuelan relations have the character of a strategic partnership. I am convinced that your activity at the head of the state will continue to contribute to their progressive development in all directions, Putin said in a statement published on his Telegram channel.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry also congratulated Maduro yesterday.