Nicolas Maduro has again emerged victorious in Venezuela's presidential election on Monday amid Opposition’s claims of irregularities in the polls. Maduro has become Venezuela’s President for the third successive time.
On Sunday, the locals waited anxiously for the results of presidential election that could pave the way to an end to 25 years of single party rule, even as some polls remained open more than three hours after a deadline to close, reported AP.
According to AP report, shortly after midnight, the National Electoral Council said Maduro secured 51 per cent of the vote, overcoming opposition candidate Edmundo González, who garnered 44 per cent. It said the results were based on a tally of 80 per cent of voting stations, marking an irreversible trend.
It added the electoral authority, which is controlled by Maduro loyalists, didn't immediately release the official tallies from each of the 15,797 voting centres nationwide, hampering the opposition's ability to challenge the results after claiming it had the voting acts for only 30 per cent of the ballot boxes.
"The delay in announcing results — six hours after polls were supposed to close — indicated a deep debate inside the government about how to proceed after Maduro's opponents came out early in the evening all but claiming victory. Opposition representatives said tallies they collected from campaign representatives at the polling stations showed Gonzalez trouncing Maduro," the report mentioned.
Earlier, Maduro faced his toughest challenge from the unlikeliest of opponents González, who is said to be a retired diplomat. Gonzalez reportedly was unknown to voters before being tapped in April as a last-minute stand-in for opposition powerhouse Maria Corina Machado.
Maduro, 61, faced off against an opposition that has managed to line up behind a single candidate after years of intraparty divisions and election boycotts that torpedoed their ambitions to topple the ruling party, the report mentioned.
There were scenes of Opposition leaders celebrating, online and outside a few voting centers, what they assured was a landslide victory for González, the report said.
Also, the opposition’s hope was boosted by purported exit polls showing a healthy margin of victory for González. However, results came otherwise.
On the other hand Maduro supporters were not showing any signs of throwing in the towel, the report said.
On Sunday the polls were supposed to begin closing at 6 pm, however more than three hours after the deadline some voting centres in Caracas remained open and authorities were silent, the report said.
The opposition called for the National Electoral Council to begin counting ballots, it mentioned.
Earlier, US Vice President Kamala Harris offered her support. “The United States stands with the people of Venezuela who expressed their voice in today's historic presidential election,” Harris wrote on X. “The will of the Venezuelan people must be respected."
On Sunday, the voters started lining up at some voting centres across the country before dawn on Sunday, sharing water, coffee and snacks for several hours.
The election will have ripple effects throughout the Americas, with government opponents and supporters alike signalling their interest in joining the exodus of 7.7 million Venezuelans who have already left their homes for opportunities abroad.
Authorities set Sunday's election to coincide with what would have been the 70th birthday of former President Hugo Chávez, the revered leftist firebrand who died of cancer in 2013, leaving his Bolivarian revolution in the hands of Maduro. But Maduro and his United Socialist Party of Venezuela are more unpopular than ever among many voters who blame his policies for crushing wages, spurring hunger, crippling the oil industry and separating families due to migration.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has said US has serious concerns' that announced result of Venezuelan election does not reflect will of people.
