VIDEO: Venezuela: Maduro claims victory in vote that critics call a sham
Venezuela: Maduro claims victory in vote that critics call a sham
source News.com.au
By Flora Charner and Patrick Gillespie, CNN
Updated 1247 GMT (2047 HKT) July 31, 2017
Caracas, Venezuela (CNN)President Nicolás Maduro thanked "the brave people of Venezuela" for voting in a controversial election for a new Constituent Assembly that will have the power to rewrite his country's constitution.
The election will allow Maduro to replace Venezuela's current legislative body -- the National Assembly -- with the new assembly, made up of 545 members, all nominated by his administration.
"We have a Constituent Assembly. I said, come hell or high water-- and hell and high water came -- and the Constituent Assembly arrived from the hand of the people, from its conscience," Maduro said, claiming victory.
The opposition boycotted the election as a fraud and has called for massive protests to begin again Monday.
Maduro argued that the Constituent Assembly will help bring peace to a polarized country, with all branches of the government falling under the political movement founded by his late mentor and predecessor, Hugo Chavez. But critics say it will erode democracy.
International criticism of the vote poured in, including from the United States, with the State Department on Sunday issuing a statement saying the elections were "designed to replace the legitimately elected National Assembly and undermine the Venezuelan people's right to self-determination."
"We will continue to take strong and swift actions against the architects of authoritarianism in Venezuela, including those who participate in the National Constituent Assembly as a result of today's flawed election," the statement said.
Deadly clashes between protesters and police marred Sunday's vote, which followed weeks of violent street protests in which many people have been killed or injured. On Sunday the death toll rose sharply with at least ten people -- including two teenagers -- killed at protests and a National Guard officer also reported dead by the attorney general's office.
