Elections in Venezuela: Manuel Rosales said that he is willing to give his place to another opposition candidate

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Manuel Rosales offers to give up his candidacy to support opposition unity in Venezuelan elections

The candidate for the presidency of Venezuela, Manuel Rosales, has expressed his willingness to give up his place on the electoral ballot to a candidate of unity amid uncertainty about who will carry the opposition flag in the upcoming elections on July 28th against Nicolás Maduro.

Maria Corina Machado, the winner of October’s opposition primary election, and her replacement, Corina Yoris, an 80-year-old academic, were unable to register for the race before Monday’s deadline. In response, two opposition groups, including Rosales’ Un Nuevo Tiempo party, managed to register candidates.

The Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) coalition, which has a candidate on the electoral ballot, registered former ambassador Edmundo González at the last minute. Despite this, Machado insists that Yoris remains the candidate of the Unitary Platform coalition.

Rosales, a 71-year-old politician, has stated that he registered to ensure there was a candidate to avoid abstention. He has offered to give up his candidacy to whoever can overcome the government’s obstacles.

The opposition has until April 20 to designate a replacement candidate and is contemplating whether to support one of the registered candidates or name another. Analysts have raised doubts about whether any of the registered opposition figures could garner as much support as Machado without her backing.

Meanwhile, some opposition leaders have sought refuge in the Argentine embassy in Caracas, citing persecution by the Maduro regime. The Argentine government refused to disclose the names of the refugees for security reasons but confirmed that they were linked to Machado.

The Maduro regime has been accused of targeting opposition figures, with two men allegedly carrying firearms at a Maduro event being linked to Machado. The Vente Venezuela party denies these allegations and maintains that the government is persecuting Machado.

In response to these developments, the Argentine government expressed concerns about a power outage at its embassy in Caracas, where the opposition leaders are taking refuge. Tensions continue to escalate as the country prepares for the upcoming elections.