Venezuela’s Supreme Court on Thursday approved the reelection of President Nicolas Maduro amid ongoing victory claims by the opposition.
The Court "unquestionably certifies the electoral material and validates the results of the presidential election of 28 July 2024, issued by the National Electoral Council, CNE, in which citizen Nicolas Maduro Moros was elected President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for the constitutional period 2025-2031," its president, Caryslia Rodriguez, stated on Thursday.
Maduro’s victory, with 52% of the votes, was originally announced by the CNE which, however, did not provide polling station records, claiming a cyber-attack. This explanation has been largely dismissed as implausible by the opposition and numerous observers, who interpreted it as a government ruse to avoid revealing the exact vote count.
The opposition has publicly presented poll records from its own observers, asserting that its candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, won the election with over 60% of the votes.
Maduro himself referred the matter to the Superior Court of Justice, TSJ, in early August, with a view to obtaining a judicial confirmation of his victory.
Spontaneous protests broke out following the announcement that Maduro had won a third term as president. The protests were brutally suppressed, resulting in 25 deaths, 192 injuries and approximately 2400 arrests, according to the authorities.
The opposition reacted swiftly to the Supreme Court's decision.
“Gentlemen of the TSJ," Gonzalez Urrutia said, "no decision can eclipse popular sovereignty. The country and the world are aware of your partiality and thus, your inability to resolve the conflict. Your decision will only intensify the crisis.”
The opposition leader urged Maduro, on social media, to allow a peaceful political transition.
