Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday denounced Venezuela’s election results, which he said were not won by the opposition candidate, as “deeply flawed.”
in statementBlinken said the United States commends the 12 million Venezuelans who participated in the July 28 presidential election, but that President Nicolas Maduro is not the true winner.
The National Electoral Commission (CNE) declared Maduro the winner, even though it has not released precinct-level results from voting machines.
“Unfortunately, the processing of the vote and the announcement of the results by the Maduro-controlled National Electoral Commission (CNE) were deeply flawed, producing results that do not reflect the will of the Venezuelan people,” Blinken said in a statement.
The US claims the CNE’s “hasty declaration” of Maduro as the election winner lacks supporting evidence, and the statement said the organization has not released disaggregated data despite requests from the Biden administration, undermining the organization’s credibility.
Blinken said the democratic opposition has released 80% of the vote count results from Venezuela’s polling stations, showing Maduro’s challenger, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, is the true winner.
“Given the overwhelming evidence, it is clear to the United States, and most importantly, to the Venezuelan people, that Edmundo González Urrutia received the most votes in Venezuela’s July 28 presidential election,” Blinken said.
Blinken called for safety and protection for Edmundo Gonzales and other opposition leaders, including those arrested for protesting the electoral process.
“I congratulate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia on his successful election campaign. Now is the time for Venezuelan political parties to begin negotiations for a respectful and peaceful transition of power, in accordance with Venezuela’s electoral law and the wishes of the Venezuelan people,” Blinken said.
The Secretary of State said the United States supports the rebuilding of democratic norms in Venezuela and stands ready to work with other international partners to help.
