Antony Blinken acknowledges the head of Venezuela’s opposition as the election’s victor.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Thursday that the Venezuelan opposition emerged as the clear victor in the recent presidential election, countering claims made by the current authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro.

This support from the U.S. coincides with calls from regional leaders for Maduro to provide evidence of his self-declared victory. Blinken emphasized that there is substantial evidence indicating that opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia won the election held on Sunday.

He criticized Venezuela’s electoral authority for conducting a severely flawed election that did not accurately reflect the voters’ intentions. He urged Venezuelan political parties to start discussions aimed at a respectful and peaceful transition in line with the country’s electoral laws and the will of the people.

Maduro’s electoral body has yet to release the official vote tallies, while opposition figures claim to have obtained 80% of the voting machine receipts, suggesting that González received two-thirds of the votes, despite Maduro being declared the winner with only 51%.

Leaders from Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia have called on Maduro to disclose all vote counts. Maduro has alleged, without evidence, that the electoral council was compromised. Over 1,000 individuals, many protesting against alleged electoral fraud, have been arrested.

Following the 2018 election, which faced widespread criticism for being neither free nor fair, several countries, including the U.S., recognized then-opposition leader Juan Guaido as the interim president and imposed sanctions on Venezuela.