Maduro Declared Winner Amid Disputed Venezuelan Election Results

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been declared the winner of the country’s presidential election, according to partial results announced by the National Electoral Council (CNE). Elvis Amoroso, head of the CNE and a close ally of Maduro, stated that with 80% of ballots counted, President Maduro had secured 51% of the vote, while his main rival, Edmundo González, received 44%.

However, the Venezuelan opposition has rejected the CNE’s announcement as fraudulent, claiming that their candidate, González, actually won with 70% of the votes and should be recognized as the rightful president-elect. They argue that vote tallies, exit polls, and quick counts indicate that González led Maduro by a significant margin of 40 percentage points.

The opposition, having united behind González in an effort to unseat President Maduro after 11 years in power, pointed to opinion polls conducted prior to the election that suggested a decisive victory for González.

The outcome of this election carries significant implications beyond Venezuela’s borders, as the nation of 29.4 million people continues to grapple with economic and political turmoil. Over the past decade, approximately 7.8 million Venezuelans have fled the country due to the crisis under Maduro’s administration. Pre-election polls suggested this exodus might continue, with one survey indicating that a third of the population would consider emigration.

The election results are of particular interest to neighboring Latin American countries and the United States, where immigration remains a contentious issue. Venezuela’s vast oil reserves also make its political trajectory critical for global economic relations. Under Maduro, Venezuela has developed closer ties with countries like China, Iran, and Russia, while blaming US sanctions for its economic struggles.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed skepticism about the election results, highlighting “serious concerns that the declared outcome does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people.” The CNE, dominated by government loyalists, has faced criticism for its handling of the election process.

Meanwhile, President Maduro celebrated the outcome as a “triumph of peace and stability,” commending the Venezuelan electoral system and dismissing his opponents. The opposition had deployed thousands of witnesses to polling stations nationwide in an effort to validate their vote count independently.