Venezuela’s former opposition presidential candidate, Edmundo González, claimed on Wednesday he was forced to sign a letter effectively conceding defeat in July’s disputed election, which official results show was won by incumbent President Nicolás Maduro.
González, who fled to Spain following the contentious election, said in a video posted on social media that he signed the document under duress. “They showed up with a document that I would have to sign to allow my departure from the country,” González stated. “In other words, either I signed or I would face consequences. There were very tense hours of coercion, blackmail and pressure.”
The letter, presented during a nationally televised press conference by Jorge Rodríguez, head of the National Assembly and Maduro’s chief negotiator, shows González as the sender and is addressed to Rodríguez. In it, González reportedly acknowledges the Supreme Tribunal of Justice’s ruling confirming Maduro’s victory, despite disagreeing with it.
This revelation adds another layer of complexity to Venezuela’s ongoing political crisis. The July 28 election results have been heavily contested, with González and the Unitary Platform coalition claiming they defeated Maduro by a significant margin.
Venezuela’s National Electoral Council, widely seen as loyal to Maduro, declared him the winner shortly after polls closed without providing detailed vote counts. The opposition coalition, however, collected and published online tally sheets from 80% of the nation’s electronic voting machines, which they claim show González winning with twice as many votes as Maduro.
Following the election, González became the subject of an arrest warrant related to the publication of these tally sheets. The lack of transparency in the election process drew international condemnation, prompting Maduro to request an audit from the Supreme Tribunal of Justice, which subsequently reaffirmed his victory.
In response to González’s video statement, Rodríguez threatened to reveal audio of their conversations if the former candidate did not retract his assertions of coercion.
As Venezuela approaches the start of the next presidential term on January 10, the country remains deeply divided. González, in his video message, referred to himself as the “elected president of millions and millions of Venezuelans” and vowed to fulfill their mandate, contradicting the contents of the letter he allegedly signed under pressure.
