Venezuela’s re-elected Maduro faces overseas censure

The 55-year-old successor to former president Hugo Chavez hailed his win as a victory against “imperialism,” but his main rival refused to recognise the result alleging irregularities.

Declaring Sunday’s vote a “sham,” the United States is now threatening sanctions on Venezuela’s all-important oil sector, which is already reeling from falling output, a brain-drain and creaking infrastructure.

The European Union and major Latin Americans repeatedly warned in advance that conditions were unfair.

Panama’s government followed suit, quickly saying it would not recognise the result. But fellow leftist-run nations Cuba and El Salvador sent congratulations.

MADURO’S ADVANTAGES

Venezuela’s mainstream opposition boycotted the vote, given that two of its most popular leaders were barred, authorities had banned the coalition and various of its parties from using their names, and the election board is run by Maduro loyalists.

The government used ample state resources during the campaign and pressure was put on state workers to vote.

The election board said Maduro took 5.8 million votes, versus 1.8 million for his chief challenger Henri Falcon, a former governor who broke with the boycott to stand.

Falcon called for a new vote, complaining about the government’s placing of nearly 13,000 pro-government stands called “red spots” close to polling stations nationwide.

Mainly poor Venezuelans were asked to scan state-issued “fatherland cards” at red tents after voting in hope of receiving a “prize” promised by Maduro.

The “fatherland cards” are required to receive benefits including food boxes and money transfers.

Maduro now faces a colossal task to turn around Venezuela’s moribund economy and offered no specifics on reforming two decades of state-led policies. The bolivar currency is down 99 percent over the past year and inflation is at an annual 14,000 percent, according to the National Assembly.

Furthermore, Venezuela’s multiple creditors are considering accelerating claims on unpaid foreign debt, while oil major ConocoPhillips has been taking aggressive action to seize state oil company PDVSA’s assets over a 2007 nationalization.

Though increasingly shunned in the West, Maduro can at least count on the support of major powers China and Russia, who have provided billions of dollars’ funding in recent years.

In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China believed the Venezuelan government and people could handle their own affairs and that everyone should respect the choice of the Venezuelan people.

Asked if China had sent congratulations to Maduro, he said China would “handle this in accordance with diplomatic convention”, but did not elaborate.

U.S. Republican senator Marco Rubio, a strident critic of Maduro, urged isolation of his government and said he supported “all policy options” to return Venezuela to democracy.

U.S. President Donald Trump has said in the past he would not rule out military action against Venezuela.