Antony Blinken: The Results Announced in Venezuela's Elections Do Not Reflect the Votes

On Monday, August 8, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reacted to the announcement of Nicolás Maduro's victory in Venezuela's presidential elections, stating, "The United States has serious concerns, and the results announced by Venezuela's electoral authority do not reflect the will of the people." At the same time, María Corina Machado, a leader of the Venezuelan opposition, claimed early Monday that opposition candidate Edmundo González received 70 percent of the votes in the weekend presidential elections. Reuters reported that Blinken interrupted his remarks at a meeting of Indo-Pacific countries just minutes after Venezuelan electoral officials declared Maduro the winner. According to Reuters, Blinken said, "The international community is closely monitoring developments and will respond accordingly." The U.S. Secretary of State emphasized, "It is crucial that every vote is counted fairly and transparently; electoral officials must share information without delay with opposition and electoral observers and publish a detailed vote count." Just hours earlier, following the presidential elections in Venezuela on Sunday, Nicolás Maduro, the current president, was declared the winner amidst opposition claims of irregularities. Accordingly, Elvis Amoroso, head of Venezuela's National Electoral Council, announced that Maduro had triumphed over opposition candidate Edmundo González. However, María Corina Machado stated that González had secured 70 percent of the votes in the presidential race. This announcement came as the National Electoral Council reported Maduro's victory with 51 percent of the votes, contradicting several exit polls. Opposition representatives had previously stated that they believed the data collected from campaign representatives at 30 percent of polling stations indicated that González was defeating Maduro. Part of the program included a discussion with Leopoldo López, one of the leaders of the Venezuelan opposition. The presidential elections in Venezuela on August 7 saw government opposition groups calling for global support. Maduro was declared the winner of the Venezuelan elections, while opponents claimed irregularities and violations occurred. The presidential elections in Venezuela raised warnings about the potential for a "bloodbath"; the U.S. stated it would not prejudge the situation. Latin American leaders condemned the assassination attempt on Trump.