Venezuela's Maduro wins landslide in election boycotted by opposition

CARACAS — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s ruling United Socialist Party (PSUV) achieved a sweeping victory in parliamentary and regional elections held on Sunday, following a boycott by major opposition groups protesting last year’s disputed presidential election.

According to official results released by the National Electoral Council (CNE), the PSUV won 23 out of 24 governorships nationwide and garnered 82.68% of the votes cast on party lists for the National Assembly. Final tallies for constituency-level parliamentary seats are still pending.

The principal opposition coalition, led by prominent activist María Corina Machado, had called for a boycott of the elections, denouncing the process as a “farce” intended to confer legitimacy on Maduro’s contested government.

Observers noted significantly reduced voter turnout compared to the July 2024 presidential election. The CNE reported that just over 42% of Venezuela’s 21 million registered voters participated in Sunday’s elections.

In the weeks preceding the vote, Venezuelan authorities detained more than 70 individuals on allegations of conspiring to “sabotage” the electoral process. Among those arrested was opposition figure Juan Pablo Guanipa, accused of leading a so-called “terrorist network.”

Maduro’s government, widely characterized as authoritarian, frequently accuses foreign-backed opposition factions of orchestrating attempts to overthrow the administration. Maduro assumed power in 2013 after the death of his predecessor and political mentor, Hugo Chávez.

Speaking on Sunday, President Maduro hailed the election outcome as a “victory for peace and stability,” affirming it as proof of the enduring strength of “Chavismo,” the socialist movement founded by Chávez.

The elections encompassed the selection of 285 National Assembly members and 24 state governors, including the oil-rich Essequibo region, administered by neighboring Guyana but claimed by Venezuela.

Despite official declarations, many Venezuelans remain skeptical of the electoral process following last year’s presidential vote, which Maduro was declared to have won for a third six-year term without the release of detailed results. The opposition released independent tallies from polling stations showing a clear victory for their candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia.

The post-election period in 2024 was marked by violent crackdowns on protests, resulting in 28 deaths and hundreds of arrests, further isolating Venezuela on the international stage.

Ahead of Sunday’s results, Maduro dismissed the opposition boycott, stating, “When the opponent withdraws from the field, we advance and occupy the terrain.”

Opposition leader Machado posted images on social media depicting largely empty polling stations, condemning the vote as a “grand farce” and calling on the military to intervene against Maduro—a repeated appeal that has been ignored by the armed forces.

Exiled opposition candidate González Urrutia, now residing in Spain, described the boycott as a “silent but resounding declaration that the desire for change, dignity, and a future remains intact.”

“I’m not voting because I voted in the presidential election, and the elections were stolen. It’s truly a farce,” said 78-year-old retired civil servant Candelaria Rojas Sierra, en route to church in San Cristóbal to pray for Venezuela.

Conversely, 32-year-old university student Samadhi Romero defended the election as an “important exercise in civic participation,” casting her vote for Maduro’s son, 35-year-old National Assembly member Nicolás Maduro Guerra, who sought re-election in Caracas.

A small opposition faction led by former presidential candidate Henrique Capriles rejected the boycott strategy, arguing that prior voter abstentions had only enabled Maduro to consolidate power. Capriles himself secured a parliamentary seat in Sunday’s vote.

These elections take place amid Venezuela’s ongoing economic collapse, once the strongest in Latin America, now crippled by years of mismanagement and international sanctions. The U.S. administration recently revoked Chevron’s license to operate in Venezuela, cutting off a critical revenue source for Maduro’s government. The United States has also ended deportation protections for roughly 350,000 Venezuelan migrants, sending hundreds to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador.

The election in the disputed Essequibo territory has heightened international concerns. Though administered by Guyana for decades, Venezuela maintains a territorial claim, with Maduro reiterating threats of partial annexation on Sunday.