Hours after Venezuelans participated in massive numbers in the presidential election on 28 July, the government-controlled National Electoral Council (CNE) declared incumbent President Nicolás Maduro the winner, who reportedly received 51 percent of votes. The leading opposition candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia, allegedly received 44 percent of votes. These numbers were not verified. Venezuela’s opposition – led by banned candidate María Corina Machado and her chosen replacement González Urrutia – has since been able to release a significant number of tally copies from polling centers, which document an estimated 67 percent of votes for González Urrutia.
In response to growing concern over electoral fraud, on 29 July at least 210 spontaneous protests occurred across the country, according to the Laboratorio de Paz. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk expressed alarm over reports “of disproportionate use of force by law enforcement officials along with violence by armed individuals supporting the government, known as colectivos.” As of the afternoon of 30 July, Foro Penal verified 177 detentions and 11 assassinations, noting that the actual figures are much higher as human rights defenders continue to verify rapidly mounting reports of arrests, disappearances and others serious violations. Over the past three days, high level government officials have significantly intensified hostile rhetoric against protesters, the opposition and human rights activists. In a public speech on 30 July, President Maduro ordered Venezuelans to register protesters in the government’s “VenAPP” to “go for them,” raising alarm about intensifying targeted persecution. At the time of writing, it is unclear to what extent “VenAPP” is still in circulation.
UN Secretary General António Guterres has called on the CNE to publish results with a precise breakdown by polling station. Following similar calls by a growing number of governments, Venezuela announced the immediate expulsion of diplomatic personnel from Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Peru, Panama and Uruguay. In an official statement released on 30 July, the Carter Center – which deployed a technical electoral observation mission – concluded that the vote “cannot be considered democratic.” The Carter Center detailed immense challenges Venezuelan citizens and the opposition faced in the months-long electoral process, which was marked by arbitrary detentions and enforced disappearances of actual or alleged opponents and a crackdown on civic space.
Sunday’s vote marked the beginning of a highly volatile, yet critical period for Venezuela, including ahead of the official take-over of a new administration in January 2025 and the anticipated parliamentary, governorship and municipal elections expected next year. Elisabeth Pramendorfer, Latin America expert at the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, said, “The international community should continue to demand a full voting audit and identify coordinated and constructive engagement to accompany Venezuelans in their quest for a democratic transition and respect for fundamental rights. All remaining diplomatic channels to the Maduro government – including by Colombia and Brazil – should be used to push for a political solution to avoid rapidly intensifying repression and growing protection gaps for Venezuelans across the country. Failure by the CNE to publish detailed vote accounts is risking a period of renewed isolation, with disastrous effects for Venezuelans inside and outside the country.”
Publication by the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
