Political crisis after election

Maduro challenger manages to flee Venezuela

(Bild: AFP/Gabriela Oraa)

Around six weeks after the controversial election in Venezuela, the opposition presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez has left the South American country. Gonzalez sought refuge in the Spanish embassy in Caracas a few days ago and asked for asylum.

Gonzalez was traveling from Caracas to Spain on a Spanish air force plane at his own request, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares announced on the online platform X on Sunday. Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez confirmed the departure.

An arrest warrant had recently been issued for Gonzalez, which was sharply criticized internationally. It is unclear to what extent González's departure will change the political situation.

Excitement about electoral fraud in Venezuela
After the presidential election on July 28, the electoral authority, which is loyal to the party, declared Nicolás Maduro, the authoritarian head of state who has been in power for eleven years, the winner. However, it did not publish a breakdown of the results. The opposition accuses the government of electoral fraud and claims victory for González.

Maduro had protests violently crushed.

(Bild: AFP/Pedro Rances Mattey)

She published data which, according to her, are the results from more than 83% of the constituencies. According to the data, González received 67 percent of the vote and Maduro only 30 percent. The USA and several Latin American countries recognize González as the winner of the election. The European Union is also questioning the official election results.

Protests broke out during the election, which were violently suppressed by the authorities. According to the human rights organization Provea, 25 people lost their lives and more than 2,400 were arrested. The opposition denounced the arbitrary arrests of some of its representatives.

Reminiscent of 2018
Maduro's previous re-election in 2018 was not recognized by many countries. The then parliamentary president Juan Guaidó declared himself interim president, but was unable to assert himself in the country - mainly because the military backed Maduro. The latter had become president in 2013 following the death of Hugo Chávez as his designated successor.

Venezuela suffers from mismanagement, corruption and international sanctions. More than 80 percent of the population live below the poverty line. According to the UN, more than seven million people - around a quarter of the population - have left the country in recent years.