Suspicion about the elections’ results were raised early on Monday morning, when the vote tally was abruptly interrupted at a moment when opposition candidate Edmundo González appeared to have a substantial lead over the incumbent. Shortly thereafter, Maduro claimed victory, with the country’s National Electoral Council alleging that he had won 51 percent of the vote.
Simon Stano, spokesperson for the EU’s diplomatic service, said: “We are assessing the process and the outcome of the elections in close contact with national, regional and international actors on the ground. However, we are concerned about allegations of flaws and shortcomings.”
With Venezuela’s opposition accusing Maduro’s regime of attempting to steal the election, national leaders in Europe largely avoided commenting on the disputed vote, and instead tasked their foreign ministers with delivering official reactions.
“We want total transparency and that is why we are asking for the publication of the results, polling station by polling station,” Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares told Cadena Ser, adding that Madrid was helping to establish a common position toward the developing situation by liaising between Brussels and “sister nations” in the region.
“Spain is working towards a scenario in which the calm, tranquillity and democratic spirit that prevailed during the vote is maintained,” he said. “We do not have a favored candidate, we just want transparent results.”
A German foreign ministry spokesperson told POLITICO they were deeply concerned by reports of opposition supporters being denied the right to participate in the vote count, and called on the Venezuelan authorities to publish detailed election results broken down by polling station.
