Edmundo Gonzalez Receives Biden’s Support at the White House
Biden stated they must “honor” his “victory” over Maduro
Biden emphasized that the world felt “inspired” by the millions of Venezuelans who “bravely” voted for “democratic change.”
HAVANA TIMES – US President Joe Biden and Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez agreed during a meeting at the White House on Monday that his “victory” over Nicolas Maduro in the July 28 elections must be “honored.”
According to a statement released after the meeting, Biden and Gonzalez affirmed that “there is nothing more essential to the success of democracy than respecting the will of the people” and stressed that “Gonzalez Urrutia’s electoral victory must be respected through a peaceful transition to a democratic government.”
During the meeting, Biden highlighted that the world felt “inspired” by the millions of Venezuelans who “bravely” voted for “democratic change” in the July 28, 2024, elections (which Gonzalez won by a wide margin). In those elections, the National Electoral Council (CNE) declared Maduro’s re-election, with his inauguration scheduled for January 10. It didn’t matter that the Electoral Council failed to publish the detailed results.
After the elections, the Democratic Unity Platform presented official copies of the precinct vote tabulation sheets that showed Gonzalez’s victory with 67% to 30% for Maduro. The US and many other countries recognize Gonzalez as the elected president of Venezuela.
Additionally, during the meeting, according to the White House, Biden and Gonzalez expressed “deep concern” about the “unacceptable and indiscriminate use of repression” by Nicolas Maduro against peaceful protesters, democratic activists, and civil society.
Biden noted that he would closely monitor the protests scheduled for January 9th in Venezuela, for which the Maduro regime has called a large march. He emphasized that Venezuelans should be able to express their political opinions peacefully and without fear of reprisals from military and police forces.
Gonzalez, exiled in Spain since September, has declared that he will return to Venezuela to assume the presidency on January 10, the same day Maduro is scheduled to take office.
As a preliminary step, the opposition leader is on an international tour seeking support, which has already taken him to Argentina, Uruguay, and the United States.