In Maduro’s Victory, Venezuela Loses

Venezuela's Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) confirmed the victory of President Nicolas Maduro in the country's 2024 presidential election on Thursday. The ruling of the TSJ is part of Maduro's continued attempts to legitimize the election's results amid claims of electoral fraud levied by the opposition alliance known as the Unitary Platform and large-scale anti-government demonstrations following the president's announced victory on July 29..Attempts at Legitimization.The TSJ's support for Maduro's victory was announced by Caryslia Rodríguez, the President of the Supreme Court of Justice and the Electoral Chamber, who stated that the Electoral Chamber has jurisdiction over the appeal filed by Maduro and questions regarding the election have been settled "in a definitive manner," despite complaints levied by the opposition. Previously, Edmundo González Urrutia, the Unitary Platform's presidential candidate, stressed that the TSJ could not assume the responsibilities of the nation's National Electoral Council (CNE) in a statement released on Wednesday.."Based on the results obtained in the expert examination process, we can conclude that the bulletins issued by the CNE are backed by the scrutiny records generated by each of the voting machines used in the electoral process. These records are fully consistent with the database of the National Totalization Centers," Rodríguez stated.."This chamber validates the results of the July 28 presidential election issued by the National Electoral Council, where Nicolás Maduro Moros was elected as President of Venezuela for the constitutional period 2025-2031," the president of the TSJ continued..Rodríguez further confirmed that the CNE was the target of a "massive cyber attack," likely referencing previous claims levied by Venezuela's Attorney General, William Tarek Saab. Saab previously claimed that during the election, a cyberattack launched from North Macedonia sought to interfere with votes intended for Maduro, turning them towards the opposition. This alleged attack interfered with the CNE's voting verification process, likely acting as the reason for the CNE's delayed announcement of the election results..Saab claimed three individuals are under investigation for the attack, including Maria Corina Machado, the leader of the Unitary Platform and the alliance's previous presidential candidate until her disqualification in October, and two others known for their political stance against Maduro's regime. Following the announced investigation into the figurehead for the opposition, Machado announced that she had gone into hiding in an article published by the Wall Street Journal before calling on the international community to stand against Maduro's continued rule and his "demonstrably illegitimate government.".This is not the only investigation launched into Machado however, as Saab announced a second investigation into both the figurehead of the opposition and González after the pair released a joint statement calling on both police and the lower enlisted in Venezuela's military to resist Maduro's continued rule and join the opposition. This investigation is believed to be the cause of González's refusal to attend hearings organized by the TSJ regarding the election, which summoned every presidential candidate in this year's election..Continued Oppression of the Opposition.Following Maduro's announced victory, the president's regime has launched a swift and brutal campaign of political repression against the opposition and those who oppose Maduro's continued rule. These arrests have targeted numerous individuals within Venezuela, with the United Nations' mission to Venezuela reporting over 100 children have been arrested for terrorism, conspiracy, and other high crimes against the state. These charges are a common tactic employed by Maduro's enforcers, who arrest anyone who dares to express dissent to the president's continued reign. The children held by Venezuelan security forces are reportedly without parental supervision during their criminal proceedings, according to the UN's mission, a violation of International Law under Article 40 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. As of August 17, 1,416 people have been arrested according to Foro Penal, a human rights non-governmental organization, including nearly 200 women and 17 people with disabilities. Venezuela's Attorney General puts this number even higher, previously stating that 2,200 people have been arrested..Civilians are not the only ones targeted by Maduro's regime, as numerous political figures from various opposition parties have reportedly been arrested by authorities while Maduro himself has expelled the diplomatic staff from numerous different nations for questioning the results of the election. These nations include Chile, Peru, and Argentina, the latter of which held six Venezuelan asylees from the Unitary Platform leading to a tense diplomatic crisis between Venezuela and Argentina..The six asylees took shelter in the Argentine Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela's capital, following the issuance of arrest warrants against the six. After the group found safety within Argentina's diplomatic premises, Venezuelan authorities began a siege against the embassy resulting in power being cut from the building. Following the expulsion of diplomatic staff, Argentina's representative to the Organization of American States (OAS) denounced the acts of the regime and claimed the Venezuelan government told diplomatic staff for the asylees to leave alongside the expelled diplomats.."He [Maduro] tells the persons who have been given asylum to exit with the Argentine diplomats … they say it's just an administrative matter that Argentina should resolve, but how if they don't let them out? Do the asylees have wings so as to fly?" The representative told the permanent council of the OAS. "Given the lack of guarantees without safeguarding the physical integrity or safety of our asylees, the Argentine Republic sounds an alert, a warning on this situation.".Following the expulsion, Brazil took control of Argentina's Embassy, taking on the embassy's role in aiding Argentinians in Venezuela and securing the safety of the six asylees residing within the embassy. Brazil also took control of both Chile and Peru's diplomatic premises, allowing citizens of those nations to continued being cared for..Demonstrations and the stance of foreign nations have largely been shaped by the CNE's failure to publish electoral tally sheets showcasing a Maduro victory in the election, a failure only heightened by the publication of an exit poll during the final hours of the election by Edison Research, an American market research and polling company that has conducted exit polls internationally, which predicted González to win with 65 percent of the vote and ultimately acted as the catalyst for new anti-government demonstrations in the wake of Maduro's supposed victory..These demonstrations and denunciations of Maduro's victory only increased following the opposition's publication of their own collected tally sheets from polling stations across the country. The opposition, under the leadership of Maria Corina Machado, published 80 percent of all tally sheets, which ultimately showed a victory for González, who secured 67 percent of the vote according to the opposition..In response to the publication of tally sheets by the opposition, Maduro's regime has vehemently denied their authenticity, straining the relationship between Maduro and possible allies in Latin America such as Colombia whose Congress previously stated does not recognize Maduro's victory. While the failure to publicize has alienated Venezuela from possible allies, it has further emboldened those opposed to Maduro's rule, including the United States and Argentina, who both endorsed González as Venezuela's rightful president following the announced results..Victory for Maduro, Defeat for Venezuelans.The TSJ's ruling on Maduro's victory acts as a further attempt by the president to legitimize the results of this year's election to the international community and Venezuelans across the country. Despite this attempt, the opposition has made it clear they will not surrender their own claim, plunging the future of Venezuela into uncertainty as to how the opposition plans to depose the president if at all..Previously, the opposition announced their willingness to organize a deal with Maduro himself, offering him free and safe passage out of the country in exchange for the president ceding power. This offer was ultimately rejected by the president, although Panama, who recalled their own diplomatic staff shortly after Maduro's announced victory, joined in the deal by offering Maduro political asylum in the nation..As the opposition continues its fight against Maduro, political repression against the opposition and mass arrests are sure to continue until the president is removed from power of the opposition concedes their claim. Maduro's victory also heralds a change for the worse for Venezuela, as ORC Consultores, a Venezuelan polling and consulting firm, released a poll conducted in June stating that one third of Venezuelans stated they would leave Venezuela if Maduro won the election. This mass immigration would not only damage Venezuela, but put further pressure on neighboring Latin American nations such as Colombia, Chile, and Ecuador alongside criminal organizations such as Tren de Aragua who profit off of human trafficking of those fleeing the country.