Venezuela wakes up to a tense post-election day as both sides call for mobilization following disputed election results, with Nicolás Maduro claiming victory on June 28 and preparing for a third term, while the opposition alleges massive fraud.
The protests on Monday, suppressed with tear gas and pellet shots, resulted in at least seven deaths, fifty injuries, and twenty arrests. The anti-Chavista leader María Corina Machado has urged citizens to participate in "popular assemblies" nationwide in support of a peaceful transition.
Maduro's campaign chief, Jorge Rodríguez, has called for "large marches starting this Tuesday to celebrate the victory and defend the peace of the Republic." The Maduro government demanded that Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay immediately withdraw their representatives from Venezuelan territory due to expressing deep concern over the election process and demanding a full review of the results.
This afternoon, U.S. President Joe Biden will speak with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva about the crisis in Venezuela, which could become one of the most important foreign policy issues in the presidential campaign between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris. Close to 8 million Venezuelans have fled the country.
The unrest in Venezuela is prompting calls to action from the Biden administration, which had previously offered relief from oil sanctions in exchange for progress towards free elections.