Edmundo Sweeps the Mock Election

In an unexpected turn for Chavismo, Edmundo swept the recent sham elections, beating Maduro by a wide margin, which is why the National Electoral Council has not announced the results, and why the opposition has not called for a vote in the sham elections held last Sunday. This surprise victory has generated endless analysis and reflections on the current state of the United Socialist Party and the Chavista “machines.”

Eduardo Bayut – [email protected]

Maduro was widely expected to win and the results would be promoted by all state media outlets because the event was organized and promoted by the regime, but it seems that serious polls were right, Maduro does not even win events on his own. “Followers.” The exercises generally had very little participation and were considered a failure, as was evident in Lara, Guárico, Carabobo, Apure, Anzoátegui and Vargas, where almost no participants were seen and where there was some attendance, most of the participants were civil servants who were forced to attend. In these cases, those present were unable to make statements to non-state media and the general complaint was that the process was very slow and poorly organized.

They did the exercise to try to show how cohesive the political structure and the rules of Chavismo are, but they did not take into account the frustration and fatigue of the population. The few who went out to vote took the opportunity to express their dissatisfaction. So far the CNE has not said a word about the simulation, and it is not known how many people voted or where they voted, but many political activists and journalists in Caracas and in the regions have shown that the call was very bad and it seems that the few who did were largely voted for by Edmundo.

These results have set off alarm bells in Chavismo since it has become clear that 1 x 10 does not suit them, nor intimidation nor Maduro’s false promises at the last minute. The blockade of the media does not work, nor do the dirty campaigns against the opposition. On the other hand, several audio recordings have been recorded on the networks of alleged Chavista leaders severely threatening voters who are forced to go out and “make a big deal” because if they do not, they will lose “benefits” such as bags of food, gas canisters and houses that are never delivered. What has been seen are the famous “red dots” that the regime uses to try to force voters to walk around polling stations.

The numbers being handled unofficially indicate that Edmundo won the simulation with 65% of the vote, a surprising figure considering that the electorate was almost entirely “Chavistas”. In fact, the opposition did not issue any kind of call for its followers to participate in the maneuver. It seems, then, that a punitive vote is looming in the July 28 elections.

At the end of the day of the simulacra, there was great secrecy in the counting and auditing of the minutes, and in many places, polling station managers forced witnesses to leave the polling stations so that the results would not be revealed. There were also many audio recordings on social networks of citizens denouncing their removal from the polling stations, and other citizens said with sarcasm that they were removed so that we would not see the “beating” they had inflicted on Maduro.
All this shows that people are fed up, have stopped believing in Maduro, and are eager for change through democratic means.

The big challenge now is to take advantage of this popular discontent, get the vast majority of people to vote, nurture the votes and win.

There are only 25 days left until the elections and the popular campaigns continue in complete contradiction, Maduro’s followers seek to intimidate his “followers” and force them to vote for him, otherwise they will lose the increasingly fewer benefits that the regime grants them, while it offers the followers of Edmundo and María Corina hope for change, freedom, family reunification and the return of order to the country.

Edmundo’s surprise win is a clear sign that nothing is guaranteed in politics. This result has put the system on the run, not only defying expectations, but also showing that the red machine is not working as it has on other occasions.