Venezuela votes today as Maduro seeks third term amid fears of election frauds

As Venezuela holds elections on Sunday, President Nicolas Maduro is looking for a third term while the opposition remains anxious with fears of fraud.

Even though the elections are the deemed to be most free in decades in Venezuela, the opposition has still been restrained in campaigning. For one, the main Opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado, is not on the ballot. Maduro’s regime declared the primary election that chose her as illegal and she has since become a kingmaker by throwing support behind Edmundo González, Maduro’s main opponent who has been propped by a coalition of opposition parties.

Even though the opposition has been predicted to win by a wide margin by pollsters, the parties fear fraud will keep them away from power, according to AFP.

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Dozens of opposition figures have been reportedly arrested ahead of election and widespread harassment of the opposition has been alleged, as per the agency.

Amid such circumstances, the opposition fears that even though the elections are deemed relatively free, the voting and the counting of votes may not be free enough to give them a level-playing field.

Will there be free and fair elections in Venezuela?

Elections are taking place in Venezuela in line with the Barbados Agreement signed last year. But Maduro’s regime stands accused of violating it in part.

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The agreement mandated Maduro to hold elections and allow European Union (EU) observers into the country. It also included lifting of bans on opposition figures from running for the post of president. It also mandated Maduro to provide the opposition a level-playing field to the opposition.

Even though elections are being held as per the timeline and bans on the opposition candidates have been lifted, several opposition figures have been arrested. The main opposition leader, Maria Corina, has been banned from contesting elections. This means that the Venezuelans elections can only be partially free.

In crackdown on the opposition, Maduro’s regime has opened criminal investigations against some of its organisers of the primary that elected Maria Corina as the opposition leader. It has also issued warrants for several of her supporters and arrested some members of her staff, according to The Associated Press.

Maduro was re-elected in 2018 in elections that were widely considered sham. Now, as he stands in elections for the third time, it remains to be seen how it turns out to be.

Maduro’s misgovernance & geopolitical crisis

More than a decade of Maduro’s rule has plunged Venezuela into a cobweb of crises.

As many as 68 per cent Venezuelans struggle to find food and the condition is such that even 59 per cent of the richest 20 per cent say they have been unable to afford food because of inflation, according to a Gallup survey.

As conditions in Venezuela worsened over the decadelong rule of Maduro, around 7.7 million people fled the country to take shelter elsewhere in South and North America, according to the United Nations.

A survey cited by the AP said that as many as 25 per cent of all Venezuelans said they wanted to leave the country but 47 per cent of them said they would stay if the opposition won the elections.

Even though Venezuela has the world’s largest proven oil reserves, the production has declined over the years because of widespread corruption and mismanagement by Maduro’s regime. The geopolitical tensions with the United States means that even the oil that’s produced cannot be normally sold as purchase of such oil is heavily-sanctioned.