Venezuelans protest President Maduro's re-election after 'exceptional manipulation' in polls

Thousands of furious Venezuelans took to the streets in and beyond the capital Caracas on Monday (July 29), with fresh protests expected on July 30 against what they describe as 'a stolen election'. Ordinary citizens of the South American nation as well as opposition politicians tore down posters of President Nicolas Maduro across Caracas.

The country's electoral council loyal to President Maduro announced that he won a third term in voting after Sunday (July 30).

The opposition, which polls had predicted would win by a landslide, claimed it took more than two-thirds of the votes in the oil-rich country.

The National Electoral Council (CNE) gave Maduro 51 per cent of the votes, against 44 per cent for Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, the proxy for wildly popular opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.

Courts loyal to Maduro barred Machado from running for president earlier this year, citing what she and many Venezuelans call bogus corruption charges.

Most Venezuelans live on just a few dollars a month and endure shortages of food and such basics as soap and toilet paper.

The opposition rejected the results announced by the electoral council but has not yet called for protests.

Maduro, without giving evidence, denounced what he called an incipient coup. "They are trying out their first failed steps to destabilise Venezuela," he said.

Also watch |Venezuela Elections 2024: Incumbent Nicolas Maduro wins third term

Meanwhile, on Tuesday (July 30), a leading figure within Venezuela's opposition coalition was arrested, his party said, denouncing an "escalation of repression" amid ongoing protests.

"Just a few minutes ago our national political coordinator, Freddy Superlano, was kidnapped," The Voluntad Popular party wrote on X, alongside a video of him being taken away by officials dressed in black.

Earlier, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado told reporters that a review of available voting records clearly showed that the next president "will be Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia".

The records showed a "mathematically irreversible" lead for Gonzalez Urrutia, she said, with 6.27 million votes to Maduro's 2.75 million.

The Organisation of American States, a regional body, charged Tuesday (July 30) there was "exceptional manipulation" of the election results that handed Maduro his win.

Machado called Venezuelans to turn out for "popular assemblies" nationwide to show support for a peaceful transition of power.

(With inputs from agencies)