Venezuela elections: Maduro votes and says he will respect the results

When voting this Sunday (28), Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro told journalists that the results of the polls will be respected. Around 21 million voters are choosing who will lead the country between 2025 and 2031.

“I believe you did not listen to me. I am Nicolás Maduro, president, and I recognize the electoral referee. Whatever he says will be recognized and defended by the Armed Forces and our people,” said the president in response to a journalist’s insistence on recognizing the election results.

Maduro faces nine opponents, including Edmundo González Urrutia, the main opposition candidate.

Read more: Maduro proposes inclusive national dialogue without foreign interference

The polls in that country are divergent, with forecasts that give a wide margin of difference for both Maduro and Urritia.

The president of Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE), Elvis Amoroso, said that each of the activities established in the electoral schedule was carried out with transparency and with the participation of political organizations and international observers.

600 observers arrived in the country and were able to witness the installation of 30,299 polling stations with 21 million eligible voters.

This is the first election since 2015 in which the entire opposition has agreed to participate in the election. Since 2017, the main opposition parties have been boycotting national elections.

Venezuela has faced a financial and commercial blockade since at least 2017, when powers such as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union began to not recognize the legitimacy of the Maduro government.

With information from agencies