Venezuela: Juan Guaido calls for unity after opposition failure in regional elections

Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed president, Juan Guaido, during his press conference on November 22, 2021 in Caracas.

© AP Photo / Ariana Cubillos

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

In Venezuela, the counting of municipal and regional election ballots continues, in particular to clarify the situation of two states whose winner is not yet known.

If the opposition finally won more than a hundred municipalities, the results remain catastrophic for opponents of Nicolas Maduro.

Self-proclaimed President Juan Guaido has attempted to speak to his camp, calling for unity but his speech is struggling to convince.

Advertising

Read more

The electoral failure of the Venezuelan opposition was finally qualified a little Monday by the victory of 117 town halls, or about a third of the municipalities of the country.

A slightly attenuated defeat, but a defeat all the same.

It is the PSUV, the governing party that wins the vast majority of regions, reports

,

. Juan Guaido, the self-proclaimed president and head of the opposition, spoke to the press and his supporters on Monday and called for the rally. " 

 " he said. he said. 

But it was already too late to call for unity.

In many regions, the accumulated results of the various opposition candidates exceed the results of the PSUV candidate, whose so-called “hard” vote is estimated at around 20% of the population.

The opposition is paying dearly for its division and its lack of discipline.

And the speech of

suggests that he does not really take responsibility for this failure, he who is part of the 60% of abstainers. 

A poll "

 largely distorted

 " according to Washington

More than the result, the ballot was considered important for both camps because it was a starting point both for the power that would like to lift the sanctions that weigh on the country, and for an opposition seeking to rebuild before the 2024 presidential election.

The United States on Monday accused Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of having "

 " Sunday's regional and local elections, which in their eyes were neither free nor fair.

"

 ," US foreign minister Antony Blinken said in a statement.

►Also read: Venezuela: the opposition suffers a stinging setback for its return to the electoral scene

Newsletter

Receive all international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

google-play-badge_FR

• Venezuela

• Nicolas maduro

• Juan Guaido