Venezuela’s highest court ruled Friday that a top opposition leader cannot run for president, dealing a blow to the prospects of credible elections that the government had agreed to hold this year in exchange for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions Americans.
The court’s decision bans opposition figure María Corina Machado from participating in elections for 15 years, upholding the Venezuelan government’s decision to bar Ms. Machado over what she claimed were financial irregularities that occurred when she was a national lawmaker.
The move comes after Ms. Machado won by an overwhelming majority an opposition primary election for president that took place in October without official government support and in which more than 2.4 million Venezuelans voted. Analysts say Ms Machado poses the biggest electoral threat to President Nicolás Maduro.
In to publish On social media platform X, Ms. Machado said on Friday that Maduro and “his criminal system have chosen the worst path for them: fraudulent elections.” She added: “What will NOT end is our fight to win democracy through free and fair elections.”
The Biden administration has tried to persuade Venezuela’s authoritarian government to hold elections by easing some of the sanctions that have decimated the country’s oil industry, a vital source of revenue.
In October, the Maduro government reached an agreement with the opposition on steps towards the presidential vote, including the possibility for opponents to choose a candidate to run in elections due to be held this year, although the date has yet to be be fixed.
The Biden administration indicated that further sanctions could be lifted if the Maduro government allowed disqualified candidates to participate in the elections. And Venezuela has agreed to allow candidates barred from running to appeal their exclusion to the country’s highest court.
But the Maduro government has also repeatedly undermined the opposition’s ability to mount a meaningful challenge.
The government questioned the opposition’s primary legitimacy and legally targeted its organizers.
The pressure has increased in recent days. Ms. Machado said her campaign headquarters had been vandalized and that three of her campaign officials had been arrested.
The United States said on Tuesday that it was “very worried” with arrest and detention orders against at least 33 Venezuelans, including opposition members, journalists and former members of the military, according to a statement from the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, Colombia.
“We call for an end to politically motivated harassment, including attacks on opposition election offices, and all efforts to stifle the democratic aspirations of the Venezuelan people through fear and intimidation,” the statement read.
U.S. officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Venezuelan court’s decision.
Since Maduro took power in 2013, following the death of Hugo Chávez – the founder of the country’s socialist-inspired revolution – a combination of growing oppression, rampant corruption and sanctions has made life much more difficult for ordinary Venezuelans, and millions of people have left the country. Village.
The United States last month released a close ally of Maduro in exchange for 10 Americans imprisoned in Venezuela in a further step in an effort to improve relations.
Venezuela’s economic collapse and political repression have fueled an exodus that has helped cause record numbers of migrants to gather at the U.S. southern border, turning migration into a major crisis as President Biden seeks re-election to November.
Experts said the court’s decision on Friday was not a surprise.
“The government would never have let Machado run: Her popularity makes her too much of a threat,” said Geoff Ramsey, senior fellow for Venezuela at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based research institute.
It also represents a problem for the Biden administration, which will “face strong pressure from Congress to reverse, partially or completely, the sanctions relief granted to Maduro,” said Phil Gunson, an analyst at the International Crisis Group who lives in Caracas.
“As things stand, the likelihood of semi-competitive elections this year has clearly diminished, but it is crucial that the opposition maintains its insistence on the electoral path,” he added.
At the same time, he added, it puts Biden in difficulty.
“The problem for Washington is that it essentially no longer has the means to pressure Maduro,” Ramsey said. “How can you threaten a regime that has endured years of crippling sanctions, multiple coup attempts and a failed mercenary invasion?”
The test, several analysts say, will be whether the opposition is able to unite around another candidate.
“This is an opportunity for Venezuela’s notoriously divided democratic opposition to show its unity,” said Christopher Sabatini, Latin America researcher at Chatham House, an international affairs research group in London. “Can you support a consensus candidate to ensure that Democrats also remain embroiled in corrupt democratic processes?”