In Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro is declared the winner of the presidential election after a disputed election. The opposition, led by Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, is however in the lead according to the counting of the polling stations. The EU does not currently recognize Nicolas Maduro’s victory.
The contested elections from Venezuela
The presidential elections in Venezuela on August 2 gave Nicolas Maduro outgoing president, winner with 52% of the votes. Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, opposition leader replacing Maria Corina Machado, calls for a recount of the votes. However, this Friday the National Electoral Council ratified Nicolas Maduro’s victory. The CNE claims to be the victim of a computer bug. This problem prevents them from publishing the minutes attesting to the results for each polling station. In the other polling stations, the minutes which were published on an internet site show Mr. Urrutia winning with 67% of the votes. Following this, the opposition denounced a tactic by Nicolas Maduro not to publish the results and thus rig the elections.
The political regime of the current president has already been under threat for some time. Venezuela’s economic crisis from 2014 to 2017 caused food shortages and strong protests that caused the deaths of 100 people.
Following this, Nicolas Maduro imposed an authoritarian regime. The 2018 presidential elections are already contested but the opponent of the regime Juan Guaido fails to overthrow the power in place. After the results of August 2, 2024, protesters took to the streets. 13 people were killed and 2000 arrested.
International reactions
At present, the European Union does not recognize the victory of Nicolas Maduro. The Council of the European Union said in a statement “Despite its commitment, the National Electoral Council of Venezuela has still not published the official minutes of the polling stations. Due to lack of evidence to support them, the results published on August 2 cannot be recognized.” The situation of repression also concerns the EU which asks the government of Venezuela “to end arbitrary arrests, repression and violent rhetoric against members of the opposition and civil society, and to release all political prisoners. »
If the European Union retains a right of reserve until the official publication of the results by the CNEthis is not the case of the United States which recognizes the victory of the leader of the opposition, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia. Conversely, China and Russia, allies of Venezuela, supported Nicolas Maduro’s victory. The Pope also called in Vatican Square to “a sincere appeal to all parties to seek the truth and avoid any type of violence. Resolve disputes through dialogue and take into account the true interests of the population.
