The announcement of the election results in Venezuela has unleashed a carousel of political reactions at an international level. These range from those who congratulate the president-elect, Nicolás Maduro, to governments that are skeptical and openly criticize the result offered by the National Electoral Council (CNE). According to this entity, the current Venezuelan president won with 51.2 percent, against the opposition candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia, who obtained 44.2 percent of the votes.
Meanwhile, other countries are demanding transparency regarding the electoral process and vote counting, and are asking for access to the voting records of the polling stations, something that the CNE has not yet published.
Below is a list of each country’s position and the reasons why:
Support and congratulations to Maduro for the election result
Bolivia, Nicaragua, Honduras and Cuba
These Four Latin American countries congratulated Nicolás Maduro on his victory in Sunday’s elections. Bolivian President Luis Arce applauded the fact that “the will of the Venezuelan people has been respected at the polls.” Meanwhile, the rest of the leaders sent congratulations to Maduro through their official channels.
“Today the dignity and courage of the Venezuelan people triumphed over pressure and manipulation,” celebrated Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
In a similar tone, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said in a letter: “To you, President Nicolás, (…), our homage and greetings, in honor, glory and for more victories. Always beyond! Peace is!”
Honduran President Xiomara Castro congratulated Maduro on his “unobjectionable victory, which reaffirms his sovereignty and the historical legacy of the Commander (Hugo Chávez).”
Outside Latin America, congratulations came from Iran, Russia and China.
“Iran congratulates #Venezuela on the successful holding of the elections and Maduro’s victory,” he posted, also in X, the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
“China congratulates Venezuela on its successful presidential election and congratulates President Nicolas Maduro on his re-election”China and Venezuela are good friends who support each other,” said Lin Jian, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry at a press conference.
The Russian Foreign Ministry posted a message on X with a photo of Maduro and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in which the latter applauds the “development of Russian-Venezuelan relations in all areas.”
Criticism and non-recognition of the election results
Uruguay, Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic and Chile
The harshest criticism has come from Latin America. Nine countries on Monday, the day after the elections, demanded a “complete review of the election results” by the Organization of American States (OAS). That organization spoke out today, Tuesday, referring to Sunday’s presidential elections in Venezuela as elections that suffered “the most aberrant manipulation.”
“The data announce a crushing victory for the opposition and the world is waiting for it to recognize defeat after years of socialism, misery, decadence and death,” wrote Argentine President Javier Milei in X.
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa also referred to the “delicate situation in Venezuela” in X. “Throughout the region, there are politicians who are trying to cling to power and who intend to rob it of peace,” he added.
From Chile, its president, Gabriel Boric, was one of the first international leaders to ask for transparency in the counting, alluding to the fact that the results are “hard to believe.” “Not all the records that could verify this election have yet been delivered. Until that is done, we as a country will refrain from recognizing what the National Electoral Council has indicated,” he noted on the social network.
Faced with this stance, the Venezuelan government announced on Monday that it was withdrawing its diplomatic representatives from these countries, and demanded the “immediate” withdrawal of all its diplomatic personnel in Venezuela.
They adopt a neutral position and/or ask for transparency
In Latin America, the only voices that have not openly positioned themselves for or against Maduro’s victory and the electoral process in Venezuela have been the governments of Mexico, Colombia and Brazil.
Mexico
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has still not recognized Maduro’s reelection and he claims that the Venezuelan CNE still “needs” to release the complete results, as he said this Tuesday during his morning press conference. However, he did criticise the “interference” of the international community.
“There is a ruling from the electoral authority with 80 percent of the polling stations counted, there is a result. However, it is necessary for these results to be made known, that it is not the general figure and that progress is made in the counting, that is what we are proposing, and not to disqualify in one sense or another,” he said.
Brazil
The Brazilian government of Luis Inácio Lula Da Silva welcomed the “peaceful nature” of the election day, but it refrains from taking a position until “disaggregated data by voting table” is published. “An essential step for the transparency, credibility and legitimacy of the outcome of the electoral process,” the Brazilian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Colombia
Since the polls closed in Venezuela, the president of the neighboring country, Gustavo Petro, has remained silent on the announcement of the re-election of Nicolás Maduro. The reaction is significant for a country with more than 2.8 million Venezuelans on Colombian soil.
Only his foreign minister, Luis Gilberto Murillo, published a message on X, which was shared by Petro, in which he considers it “fundamental that the voices of all sectors be heard.”
“It is important to clear up any doubts about the results. This implies that international observers and monitors present their conclusions on the process. We call for the complete counting of votes, their verification and independent audit to be carried out as soon as possible,” said Gilberto Murillo.
United States, Spain, Germany, United Kingdom and the rest of the European Union
On both sides of the Atlantic, messages allude to a “serious concern that the announced result does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people,” as noted by the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken.
The EU has asked Venezuela for “transparency” in the electoral process, This includes a “detailed vote count and access to the voting records of the polling stations,” said the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell.
In Spain, where the Venezuelan population has increased in recent years – up to 400,000 Venezuelans were living there in 2022 according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) – the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, also advocated for transparency in the process. However, voices from the left-wing coalition government have publicly expressed their support and recognition of Maduro’s victory.
For Germany and the United Kingdom, doubts about the vote count persist.
“We call for the prompt and transparent publication of full and detailed results to ensure that the outcome reflects the votes of the Venezuelan people,” the British Foreign Office posted on X.
Keep reading:
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