Venezuelan opposition Sergio Garrido was proclaimed governor of Barinas state on Monday.
The US State Department congratulated Venezuelans on Monday for “defending democracy” after the opposition’s victory in regional elections in the state of Barinas, the birthplace of former President Hugo Chávez, despite the “authoritarian tactics” of the officialdom.
This was indicated by the Undersecretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Brian Nichols, in a message on his Twitter account when commenting on the elections this Sunday in that Venezuelan state.
“The disqualifications of opposition candidates, censorship in the media, intimidation of voters and other authoritarian tactics could not subvert the will of the Venezuelan voters,” Nichols said.
The Venezuelan opponent Sergio Garrido snatched the government of the state of Barinas from the ruling party by winning the regional elections this Sunday, which were repeated by order of the Supreme Court, which annulled the results of the elections of last November 21 in which the anti-Chavismo had already defeated, by a narrow margin.
The opponent was imposed by a wide margin with 55% of the votes in his favor, compared to 41% obtained by the official Jorge Arreaza, according to data from the National Electoral Council (CNE).
“We congratulate all Venezuelans who defended democracy in yesterday’s elections in Barinas,” the US official remarked.
Garrido confronted Arreaza, ex-chancellor and ex-minister of Chávez, in a state that, since 1998, was governed by direct relatives of the one who was the president of Venezuela from 1999 to 2013, turning Barinas into a fiefdom that seemed untouchable until ago. little more than a month and a half.
On November 21, the opposition candidate Freddy Superlano won, by a much lower margin than that obtained today – less than 1% -, the then official candidate, Freddy Superlano. But the Supreme Court alleged that the anti-Chavista appeared in the race despite being disqualified.
After the order to repeat the elections, Superlano announced that his wife, Aurora Silva, would be the candidate, but the high court also announced her disqualification, as well as that of the second option -Julio César Reyes- for which Garrido was finally chosen, who had been elected as a councilor in the local elections.
The United States Government affirmed last week that it continues to recognize former deputy Juan Guaidó as “interim president” of Venezuela against the government headed by Nicolás Maduro. (I)
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
