Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González, accompanied by María Corina Machado, spoke at a press conference today and stated that they have the evidence they needed to prove that Edmundo was the winner of the country’s long-awaited presidential elections.
María Corina Machado stated that Nicolás Maduro received 2.7 million votes and Edmundo González more than 6 million votes.
Press Conference @MariaCorinaYA claims that Nicolás Maduro received 2.7 million votes and Edmundo González more than 6 million votes! https://t.co/nBnXQLIblP
— Gateway Hispanic (@GatewayHispanic) July 29, 2024
While they spoke, thousands of protesters took to the streets of many cities in Venezuela to protest and denounce that the regime had once again stolen the elections in which both candidates claimed victory.
In X, protests showed anti-Chavistas tearing down several statues of former President Hugo Chávez.
A second statue of Hugo Chávez has just been torn down in Venezuela by anti-socialist protesters
Second Hugo Chávez statue was just toppled in Venezuela by anti-socialist protestors pic.twitter.com/9GVOeRkiEj
— Gateway Hispanic (@GatewayHispanic) July 29, 2024
At least one person was seriously injured or killed by shots fired by Chavista security agents in the state of Aragua.
The next 24 hours will be key to see how Maduro responds to these protests. If he does not accept the results, there could be a new wave of anti-regime unrest.
So far, President Nicolás Maduro has dismissed the opposition’s accusations, calling them unfounded. “This is a desperate attempt by the fascist right to destabilize the country. The elections were fair and transparent,” declared Jorge Rodríguez, head of Maduro’s campaign command.
Some critics argue that although Machado claimed to have all the evidence of fraud, he is not actively supporting the protests, as he also called for calm and peace, urging his supporters to remain firm but peaceful in their demand for electoral justice. “We cannot allow victory to be stolen from us. Let us maintain hope and faith in a better future for Venezuela,” he concluded.
Elon Musk has been actively tweeting throughout the day and sharing videos and photos of the protests:
Major election fraud by Maduro https://t.co/fi4xcSVd2Y
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 29, 2024
