President Nicolás Maduro accused opposition leader María Corina Machado and presidential candidate Edmundo González of “criminal violence” and a close ally called for their arrests.
Maduro claims that he won the vote Sunday, despite exit polling and, the opposition says, the government’s own records, which indicate that Edmundo González won twice as many as votes.
In Venezuela and cities around the world, protesters carried vote tally receipts collected by the opposition showing that their candidate won more votes.
More than a month after the authoritarian socialist appears to have lost in a landslide, his grip on power seems as sure as ever. It’s the opposition and its backers who are running out of options.
A fourth American citizen was arrested in Venezuela, a top official in the Maduro government said Tuesday, accusing him of plotting “against Venezuela.”