Caracas, Venezuela • June 2, 2026
Venezuela’s National Electoral Council declared Nicolas Maduro the winner of Saturday’s presidential election Monday, awarding him 52.1 percent of the vote and a third six-year term. The announcement triggered immediate protests in Caracas and 20 cities across the country, with the opposition’s own vote tally showing challenger Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia ahead by 11 points.
The electoral council said turnout reached 58 percent of eligible voters, but independent monitors from the Carter Center and the European Union were denied access to polling stations on election day. Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado published her camp’s parallel count late Monday, showing Gonzalez Urrutia at 54.6 percent against Maduro’s 43.5 percent, and called on the armed forces to recognize the true result.
Crowds Take to the Streets
Protests erupted within hours of the official announcement. Security forces deployed tear gas in central Caracas and in Maracaibo, Valencia and San Cristobal. The Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict reported at least four deaths and 180 arrests across the first 12 hours of demonstrations. Videos verified by Human Rights Watch showed security personnel firing buckshot at close range into crowds in the Catia district of Caracas.
Gonzalez Urrutia, a retired diplomat who stepped in for Machado after she was barred from running, appeared briefly alongside her at a rally in Caracas before going into hiding, according to opposition sources. The U.S. State Department said it was immediately imposing a new tranche of sanctions on Venezuelan oil and financial officials, and the European Union said it would consider expanding existing measures against senior security commanders.
International Reaction
Brazil and Colombia issued a joint statement calling for a transparent recount supervised by the United Nations, diverging from their usual support for Maduro. Mexico City recalled its ambassador for consultations. The Biden administration said it was reviewing recognition options and would act within days. Maduro, speaking on state television Monday evening, called the protests a coup attempt and said armed groups planning violence had been identified.
Diego Vargas, Media Hook.