The presidential election at the end of July was already overshadowed by allegations of fraud. But now a court has issued an arrest warrant for opposition leader González. He is claiming victory in the election.
Following allegations of fraud by the opposition in the presidential election in Venezuela, an arrest warrant has been issued against opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia.
“Lost all connection to reality”
The former diplomat is accused of, among other things, usurpation of office, incitement to disregard the law, conspiracy and sabotage, according to the ruling of a court in Caracas that is responsible for terrorism cases. The judge thus granted a corresponding request from the pro-government public prosecutor.
“They have lost all touch with reality,” opposition leader María Corina Machado wrote on X. “By threatening the elected president, they are only bringing us closer together and strengthening the support of Venezuelans and the world for Edmundo González. Serenity, courage and determination. We are moving forward.”
Election results not published
After the election on July 28, the party-line electoral authority declared authoritarian head of state Nicolás Maduro, who has been in power since 2013, the winner. However, it has not yet published the detailed results. It said that a cyberattack on election night had prevented the publication of the full results.
The opposition accuses the government of electoral fraud and claims victory for its candidate González. It posted its own counting results on a website, which indicate a victory for González. According to the opposition, these are around 80 percent of the official printouts from the voting machines that were checked by election observers.
USA recognizes González's victory
The USA and several Latin American countries have already recognised the former diplomat's election victory. The European Union and the Organisation of American States also doubt the official election result.
Maduro's re-election in 2018 was not recognized internationally by many countries. The then parliamentary president, Juan Guaidó, declared himself interim president in 2019, but was unable to assert himself in the country – mainly because the military stood behind Maduro.
