MIAMI.- Hours before the extension of the candidate replacement process before the National Electoral Council ends (CNE), at the service of the regime, the Venezuelan democratic opposition has not been able to add the support agreed to the unitary candidate, Edmund Gonzalez Urrutiaelected unanimously on April 19.
On Friday the opposition leader, María Corina Machado, and the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), which brings together the main opposition parties, overcame one more obstacle on the path to the presidential elections scheduled for July 28when settling differences with the Governor Manuel Rosales to ensure the resignation of his candidacy and go in unity with González Urrutia, until then a provisional candidate, to the next elections.
Since Saturday morning, representatives of the Un Nuevo Tiempo party (UNT) and Movimiento Por Venezuela (MPV) have been trying to replace the candidacy of Rosales, whose resignation was received by the governing body that same day, with that of González Urrutia, without this has been formally processed.
“Both UNT and the MPV have so far not been allowed to formalize their support in favor of the candidacy of Edmundo González Urrutia, which constitutes a clear violation of the electoral law and the approved schedule“, denounced the democratic unity on the night of April 21 in a statement published in X.
A political decision in Venezuela?
Given the impossibility of entering the automated application system to process the substitution, representatives of the opposition parties went to the headquarters of the electoral body this Monday morning to register the adhesion of the UNT and MPV cards to the application of the Democratic Unity Table (MUD)represented by González Urrutia, but were not received by the National Electoral Board (JNE).
Pese a la 72 hour extension granted on Saturday in CNE, which expires on April 23 at midnight, the majority opposition has not been able to process the replacement of the candidacies online or in person, and they have not obtained responses from the electoral power.
“At the CNE they wait for the political decision that be adopted in the government with respect to the candidacy of Edmundo González Urrutia,” maintains the journalist specialized in political sources, Vladimir Villegas, who has followed the process of nomination, challenge and replacement of candidates.
He recalled that, from a legal point of view “there is no impediment for the UNT and MPV parties to adhere to the candidacy of González Urrutia”, as allowed by articles 61 to 63 of the Organic Law of Electoral Processes (Lopre).
González Urrutia, MUD candidate
The candidacy of González Urrutia, registered during the extension given by the CNE on March 26 after the disqualification of María Corina Machado and the impossibility of registering its standard bearer, Corina Yoriswas not the subject of challenge.
According to Electoral Gazette number 1052, dated April 10, the governing body only received four challenges to candidatures: two against Rosales, one against Nicolás Maduro and another against Antonio Ecarri, one of the “comfortable” candidates for the ruling leadership.
“González Urrutia’s candidacy was not contested by no one and was admitted within the periods of the electoral schedule. With this, her candidacy on the MUD party card, of which Edmundo is president, was firm,” reported former candidate Delsa Solórzano, president of Encuentro Ciudadano (EC).
In a publication by . “Edmundo González Urrutia is a candidate for the unit, on the hand card. There is no discussion about that,” she stressed.
Furthermore, through Electoral Gazette number 48, the CNE confirmed that the MUD electoral card is legally enabled for the presidential elections on July 28. Therefore, until now, it is only expected that the electoral power will allow the accession of UNT and MVP to the candidacy of González Urrutia.
Malicious extension?
The CNE announced an unexpected extension at the end of the afternoon of April 20, when there were less than eight hours until the replacement process was to close. This, he stated, “in response to the requests made by different organizations with political purposes participating” in the presidential elections.
At first, there was speculation on social networks about a possible replacement of Maduro’s candidacy in the face of his growing unpopularity. “Chavista sources inform me that there is currently no scenario for replacing Maduro,” said Nícmer Evans, a dissident political analyst of Chavismo.
According to the information he had, the extension was due to a “political operation” that sought to reactivate the Democratic Alliance, made up of the parties intervened by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ), which operates as the judicial arm of the regime. This, with the aim of building a “single credible” candidacy that “snatches votes from the MUD,” Evans added.
That scenario materialized this Monday afternoon. While the democratic opposition tries to carry out the accessions of González Urrutia’s candidacy to the UNT and MPV cards, two Chavista tricks were carried out.
The first occurred from the TSJ, where the opposition party Primero Justicia (PJ) intervened to grant the use of its symbols and card to the Chavista deputy of the National Assembly (AN) and presidential candidate. Jose Britoassociated with a minority wing related to the regime, which they call “scorpion.”
“First move by the ruling party after the extension for the replacement of candidates, decided by the CNE. This extension was not full of good intentionslike the decision on Primero Justicia,” Villegas stated in this regard.
The second Chavista move was carried out in parallel in the CNE. The governing body accepted the resignations of the presidential candidates Juan Carlos Alvarado, of the judicialized COPEI party; and Luis Ratti, from the Democratic Right, who requested the intervention of the Vente Venezuela organization, led by María Corina Machado, for the Luis Eduardo Martínezfrom the judicialized Democratic Action party.
Source: With information from social networks / press releases
