The Venezuelan opposition demonstrated again on Saturday in various cities in the country and abroad. The demonstrators demanded respect for the results of the presidential elections of July 28, which they claim gave victory to candidate Edmundo González.
For his part, President Nicolás Maduro maintains that he won the election, despite national and international questions about the legitimacy of the elections.
Maduro, seeking a third consecutive six-year term, was declared the winner by the official electoral body. However, the details of the votes were not made public at the time of the declaration.
On the other hand, the Unitary Platform, a coalition that brings together the main opposition parties, presented electoral records that, according to its version, show a significant advantage in votes for its candidate González over the current president.
“They will not be able to cover up the reality of July 28: we won resoundingly,” wrote González, who also demanded the release of Venezuelans “kidnapped and imprisoned by the regime,” in reference to the mass arrests of opposition leaders and supporters following the electoral contest.
On Francisco Miranda Avenue, one of the busiest and widest in the Venezuelan capital, people began to gather awaiting opposition leader María Corina Machado, who encouraged her followers to remain firm in their demand for the election results to be recognized.
Maduro was declared the winner by the National Electoral Council, which said he had obtained 6.4 million votes compared to González’s 5.3 million. The opposition, on the other hand, claims to have 84 percent of the vote tallies, according to which its candidate obtained 7.3 million votes and Maduro 3.3 million.
A week ago, the Opposition called on its supporters to take to the streets with their printed voting registration. The call was also extended to Venezuelans living abroad who will gather in the countries where they reside.
“We need the world to know that there is no turning back, that we will not stop until we achieve this. Today we are stronger than ever in 25 years and the regime is weaker than ever,” Machado said on her social networks when calling for a “huge global protest” in more than 300 cities around the world.
The government also called for demonstrations in Caracas and other cities on Saturday afternoon to support Maduro’s re-election.
Machado and González have been held in custody for three weeks, after the Attorney General’s Office, under government control, opened a criminal investigation against both following their request to the military and police to withdraw their support for President Maduro.
Since early morning, hundreds of police officers were stationed in areas surrounding the protest in Caracas and other Venezuelan cities.
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