Maduro Declared Winner in Venezuela’s Presidential Election Despite Opposition Claims and International Skepticism
With 80% of the vote counted, results from Venezuela’s presidential election contradict opinion polls that suggested President Nicolás Maduro was facing possible defeat against the relatively unknown ex-diplomat Edmundo González Urrutia.
The government-controlled electoral authority declared Nicolás Maduro the winner of Venezuela’s presidential election, dashing opposition hopes of ending 25 years of socialist rule. This announcement was immediately contested by Maduro’s political opponents and several governments in the region.
After a six-hour delay in announcing the results of Sunday’s election, which prompted concern from various South American governments, the national electoral council reported that Maduro had won with 51.21% of the vote compared to 44.2% for his challenger, Edmundo González Urrutia. The council stated that, with about 80% of votes counted, Maduro had secured more than 5 million votes, while González received 4.4 million.
“I am Nicolás Maduro Moros – the re-elected president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela … and I will defend our democracy, our law, and our people,” the 61-year-old authoritarian leader proclaimed to supporters in Caracas. Maduro dedicated his victory to his mentor, the late president Hugo Chávez, who had named Maduro as his successor shortly before passing away in 2013. “Long live Chávez. Chávez is alive!” Maduro declared.
Maduro’s victory was celebrated by allies such as Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, who praised it as a “historic victory” and a triumph of “the dignity and courage of the Venezuelan people.” Díaz-Canel tweeted, “The people spoke, and the revolution won.”
Bolivia’s left-wing leader, Luis Arce, also celebrated the election outcome, noting that it occurred on what would have been Chávez’s 70th birthday. “What a great way to remember the Comandante Hugo Chávez,” Arce tweeted.
However, the election result was condemned and questioned by many in the region, with accusations that the election had been rigged.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed “serious concerns that the result announced does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people.” He emphasized the importance of counting every vote fairly and transparently, urging election officials to promptly share information with the opposition and independent observers and demanding that electoral authorities publish a detailed tabulation of votes. “The international community is watching this very closely and will respond accordingly,” Blinken warned.
Chile’s President, Gabriel Boric, tweeted, “Maduro’s regime must understand that the results it has published are hard to believe … Chile will not recognize any result that is not verifiable.”
Peru’s foreign minister, Javier González-Olaechea, echoed this sentiment, stating, “Peru will not accept the violation of the popular will of the Venezuelan people.”
The Costa Rican government also rejected what it termed a “fraudulent” result, while Uruguay’s President Luis Lacalle Pou described the count as “clearly flawed.” Pou stated, “You cannot recognize a triumph if you do not trust the form and mechanisms used to achieve it.”
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who had supported González’s campaign after being banned from running herself, dismissed the results, asserting that the opposition had won in every state. “We won, and everybody knows it,” Machado declared. “We haven’t just defeated them politically and morally. Today we defeated them with votes,” she told journalists, claiming that González had actually won the election and should be regarded as the president-elect.
The outcome is a significant setback for Venezuela’s often divided opposition, which had rallied behind the unlikely candidacy of González—a 74-year-old former ambassador and political newcomer—hoping he could guide the nation out of one of the worst peacetime economic collapses in recent history.
In an interview with the BBC prior to the highly anticipated election, Machado asserted that Venezuela, an oil-rich South American nation, was on the brink of a “huge, unique, epic event that will change not only the history of Venezuela but also the whole region.” She claimed that “the system is cracking for the first time in 25 years” and predicted a “huge, historic turnout” that would unseat Maduro.
Throughout the day, opposition voters turned out in large numbers across the country, aiming to vote Maduro out of power. Critics hold him responsible for Venezuela’s severe economic and social crisis and accuse him of transforming the country into an increasingly repressive state where political opponents are frequently jailed and tortured.
“I voted for Edmundo González because I believe he is the only hope of change that we have here,” said Anabella Donzella, a 23-year-old economics student voting in El Marqués, a middle-class area in Caracas.
Anabella and her sister, Sofía, explained that their decision was driven by fears of being forced to leave their country, as nearly eight million Venezuelans have done since Maduro’s narrow election victory in 2013 and the onset of a deepening economic crisis. “I’m here because it’s my right, and I don’t want to end up stuck with the thought that I did nothing,” said Sofía Donzella, 27, expressing skepticism that real change could be achieved, given widespread concerns that Maduro’s administration would refuse to relinquish power and doubts about whether the election would be free and fair.
In contrast, José Martínez, a 23-year-old shoe shop caretaker from the working-class neighborhood of Petare, expressed support for Maduro. “I served [in the army], and during that time, the president helped me a lot. He helped my family, and I cannot let him down,” Martínez said.
Maduro, who initially came to power following Chávez’s premature death from cancer and was re-elected in a widely criticized 2018 election boycotted by the opposition, exuded confidence as he paid tribute at his predecessor’s tomb in Caracas before dawn on Sunday. Wearing a pink guayabera and accompanied by First Lady Cilia Flores, Maduro likened the election to the Battle of Carabobo, a historic military showdown in Venezuela’s fight for independence from Spain. “This is our Battle of Carabobo, and we are heading straight for victory,” he proclaimed, dedicating his campaign to Chávez, under whom he served as foreign minister and vice president. “This victory is yours, comandante!” Maduro exclaimed on social media platform X.
Later, after casting his vote, Maduro addressed reporters in a tracksuit top emblazoned with the colors of the country he has been accused of devastating. “I am certain that everything will work out well and that tomorrow will be a beautiful day,” the 61-year-old stated.
However, tension and nervousness were palpable on Sunday night as Venezuelans awaited an official announcement from the pro-Maduro election authority.
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris tweeted her support for the Venezuelan people: “The United States stands with the people of Venezuela who expressed their voice in today’s historic presidential election. The will of the Venezuelan people must be respected.”
