Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, a 76-year-old former diplomat recognized by some countries as the winner of the 2024 Venezuelan presidential vote, said on Saturday that Venezuela should hold new presidential elections and threw his support behind Nobel Peace Prize winner and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
What did Gonzalez say?
In a video message posted on social media, Gonzalez voiced solidarity with fellow opposition leader Machado, who is also advocating for new elections. "A few days ago in Panama, Maria Corina Machado and Venezuela's democratic forces came together with a single goal: Venezuela's freedom. We stand together, united on the same roadmap towards the same destiny," Gonzalez said.
"My commitment is to do everything in my power to ensure that mandate becomes real freedom, real democracy," he added.
Gonzalez said the election process should have "independent referees," political pluralism and both national and international observers. He said it is time "to build the conditions for holding presidential elections that serve as citizens instruments for change."
