Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro claimed an unexpected victory in Sunday's election, securing a third six-year term in a result that opposition leaders have contested, alleging manipulation of the vote count. Maduro claimed 51% of the vote, overcoming the main opposition candidate, Edmundo González, who garnered 44%, according to the official count. A small number countries have recognized Maduro's victory, while others have expressed serious concerns about the election's integrity.

Both major candidates in Venezuela’s 2024 presidential elections claimed victory on Sunday amid domestic and international concerns that the process may have been rigged, according to multiple reports. Incumbent President Nicolás Maduro, widely considered a dictator and deeply unpopular among the Venezuelan population, gathered 51% of the vote on Sunday, while his opponent, Edmundo Gonzalez, won only 44% of the vote, according to the National Electoral Council (NCE), CNN reported.

BOGOTA, Colombia — Electoral authorities claimed that Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s deeply unpopular president, had won a third term in Sunday’s election, sparking accusations that his authoritarian regime had committed massive fraud to steal victory from opposition candidate Edmundo González. After hours of delays and uncertainty, Elvis Amoroso, president of the National Electoral Council and a close Maduro ally, appeared before journalists shortly after midnight on Monday. He declared that Maduro had won with 51% compared to 44% for González, with 80% of the votes counted.

July 29 (UPI) -- Venezuela's authoritarian leader Nicolas Maduro has been declared the winner of Sunday's presidential election, despite polls showing the opposition held a wide lead and concerns over potential irregularities.

With 80% of ballots counted, the Venezuela National Electoral Council said early Monday that Maduro was elected to a third term in office with 51.20% of the vote. Main opposition Edmundo Gonzalez had 44%.

Venezuela's election body has announced that Nicolas Maduro has been reelected President of the nation, even though the opposition has claimed victory too, according to reports . The South-American country's dependence of crypto has been fuelled by a dire economic situation, international sanctions, and nearly 8 million citizens fleeing the country in the past decade. It is one of the primary remittance-dependent nations in the continent with over $461 million in remittances in 2023 coming through cryptocurrencies, according to blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis.