The Venezuelan opposition moves past the 2024 elections and prepares for the next ones

"Throughout this time, however, the regime's most hardline opposition maintained the same slogan: Venezuelans have already voted. This was a reference to the presidential elections of July 28, 2024, when Edmundo Gonzalez, the candidate backed by Maria Corina Machado, achieved a landslide victory against Maduro. That victory, far from being celebrated, forced many of opposition politicians into exile and hiding."

"Two months after the U.S. military intervention that shifted the balance of power in Venezuela and opened an uncertain though unmistakable process of political opening, the most hardline sector of the antiChavista movement is preparing for something it had long opposed: competing again in elections with no clear timetable, rules, or electoral authorities."

"According to 83% of the tally sheets collected by election observers, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia obtained 67% of the votes, compared to Maduro's 30%. Those papers, printed by each voting machine and gathered over the long election night by thousands of volunteers, became the material proof of the fraud."

Following the U.S. capture of Nicolas Maduro on January 3, Venezuela's political landscape has transformed significantly. The opposition, led by Maria Corina Machado, had maintained for over a year that the July 28, 2024 presidential election—where Edmundo Gonzalez won 67% of votes against Maduro's 30% according to 83% of tallied sheets—had already decided Venezuela's future. This strategy forced many opposition politicians into exile. However, two months after the U.S. military intervention, the hardline opposition is reversing course, preparing to compete in new elections despite unclear timelines, rules, and electoral authorities. Machado announced her return to Venezuela to prepare for electoral competition, marking a dramatic strategic shift from their previous stance.

Read at english.elpais.com