This Tuesday, for the first time in public, the United States recognized opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia as the elected president of Venezuela after dictator Nicolás Maduro declared victory in the July 28 elections.
“The Venezuelan people spoke out forcefully on July 28 and named Edmundo González as president-elect. Democracy demands respect for the will of the voters,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter.
The Biden administration recognized González Urrutia as the winner of the elections on Aug. 1, but until now had declined to refer to him as the “president-elect" of the nation.
The Venezuelan people spoke resoundingly on July 28 and made @EdmundoGU the president-elect. Democracy demands respect for the will of the voters.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) November 19, 2024
The Maduro controlled National Electoral Council (CNE) has consistently maintained the position that proclaimed Maduro was reelected as president of Venezuela with a razor thin majority. However, the organization has refused to publish the minutes and vote tallies with the disaggregated results of the elections.
The Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), the main opposition coalition in the country, presented, for its part, some minutes that give victory to its candidate, González Urrutia, who since September has been in exile and asylum in Spain denouncing persecution by the Chavista authorities.
Blinken’s comment marks the first time that the United States used the term “president-elect” to refer to Edmundo González Urrutia, a senior administration official confirmed to the EFE Spanish language news service.
The Biden administration reportedly decided to use the phrase “president elect” because of Maduro's approaching third term inauguration, which is scheduled for Jan. 10.
The new, official designation emphasizes the United States’ position that it considers González Urrutia the winner of the elections. According to said official, the situation is different from that of 2019, when the first Trump administration (2017-2021) called the opposition leader Juan Guaidó “legitimate president.”
A State Department spokesperson told the news agency that it is “clear” to both the United States and other countries and election observers that González Urrutia “had the highest number of votes” and that “makes him president-elect.”
“The Venezuelan people overwhelmingly and unequivocally expressed their desire for democratic change. The publicly available voting records say so,” he declared.
A few hours before this statement by the North American Secretary of State, opposition leader María Corina Machado askedPresident-elect Donald Trump to support the restoration of democracy in Venezuela.
Machado told an American media outlet that, although she has not had direct contact with those appointed to the next administration that will take office in January, she has had “permanent communication” with team members working with both incoming Secretary of State Marco Rubio and incoming national security advisor Mark Waltz.
The politician also reiterated that Maduro "has no choice but to negotiate", while he is in a moment of weakness under pressure from the international community, without the support of his followers and investigated for hundreds of crimes since 2017 at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
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