Photo via Dialogo America
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Venezuela, once one of Latin America’s wealthiest nations, is facing a destruction of their democracy as a result of issues stemming from stolen elections. On July 28, 2024, around 12 million Venezuelans voted, and Nicolás Maduro was declared president over Edmundo González Urrita by the Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE). However, the CNE has not provided any breakdown of the results by polling station or evidence, demonstrating a lack of accountability.
To explain the lack of published results, the CNE has claimed that the voting system was hacked or broken. But the Venezuelan voting system is fully electronic, and after voting, a tally sheet is printed with the results. The democratic opposition has set out to collect and publish these voting tally receipts to challenge the results and prove that the election was stolen. Thus far, the opposition has published over 80% of the tally sheets from polling stations. To Venezuelans and the international community alike, it is evident that incumbent Nicolás Maduro did not win the election.
Maduro, who has been in power in Venezuela since 2013, illegally claimed the presidency for a second term on January 10, 2019, making the 2024 election his third bird for a term. During his first term, oil prices and production dropped, causing Venezuela’s gross domestic product per capita to drop by over 70%. The result was a political and economic crisis. Still, Maduro’s power continued to grow as he gained control of key institutions, including the CNE, the Supreme Court, and the judiciary.
Historically, Venezuela has been more democratic and politically stable than other Latin American countries. It thrived off of a booming petroleum industry due to having the world’s largest oil reserves. In fact, in 2023, Venezuela had roughly 303 billion barrels of crude oil, which accounted for 17% of global reserves. And, despite Venezuela’s economic decline, oil continues to play a vital role in its economy. Notably, the high oil profits allowed the government to fund social programs. But this also created an unsustainable dependence on oil revenues, leading to a fragile economy that—when faced with external shocks—resulted in runaway inflation, food and medicine shortages, and mass emigration. With people desperate for stability, it was much easier for authoritarianism to take root.
The continuing destruction of democracy in Venezuela is a process driven by factors such as financial mismanagement, the erosion of democratic institutions, political repression, and a humanitarian crisis. The international community’s efforts have not been sufficient to reverse this trend. Without meaningful change, Venezuela risks becoming a permanently failed state, with severe consequences for both its citizens and the broader region.
Maduro’s first term six-year term (2013-2019) was characterized by protests, a struggling economy, attempts to remove him from office, and disputes with other countries. When Maduro illegally “won” a second term in 2019, many countries refused to recognize the election results. Still, Maduro has ensured that he remains in power by manipulating the electoral process. Maduro has banned Venezuela’s parties and their candidates from participating in the electoral process. He and his government have even gone so far as to imprison their opponents and disqualify them from running. With this, Maduro has turned Venezuela into an authoritarian state where free and fair elections no longer exist. Key democratic institutions have been systematically weakened, allowing the current government to maintain control despite exceeding unpopularity.
Currently, Venezuela is experiencing one of the largest refugee crises in the world, with over 7.7 million Venezuelans fleeing to neighboring countries due to severe shortages of food, medicine, and basic services. Those who remain face poverty, malnutrition, deteriorating living conditions, and a lack of clean water. Every day, Venezuelan migrants put their lives at severe risk to escape. Migrants who go north toward Central America and the United States must journey through the Darién Gap, a section of jungle between Panama and Colombia that has been highlighted as one of the world’s most dangerous migration routes. Evidently, Venezuelans will go to any length to escape their country.
Even worse, many surrounding Latin American countries cannot handle the influx of immigrants, thus exacerbating the issue. This humanitarian crisis directly results from the Maduro government’s mismanagement and corruption. Maduro’s prioritization of political survival over the well-being of his citizens highlights the erosion of—and utter disregard for—democratic values.
Source: Harvard University
Another contributing factor to the destruction of democracy in Venezuela is political repression. While the lack of access to significant economic and social rights remains an issue, protestors who demand these rights have faced violent suppression and widespread human rights abuses. Specifically, security forces from the government have injured and, in some cases, killed demonstrators. Additionally, critics of Maduro have been arbitrarily detained; some have mysteriously disappeared. Since 2014, roughly 15,700 people have been arrested; approximately only 9,500 have since been released. However, even after reappearing, these people are still subject to prosecution. The government’s use of violence and intimidation to silence critics is yet another clear sign of the breakdown of democratic norms. The survival of the regime depends on coercion, making it impossible for opposition groups to challenge the government through democratic means.
Western nations, particularly the U.S. and the European Union, have imposed economic sanctions in response to Maduro’s electoral fraud, aimed at pressuring his regime to restore democracy. The U.S. has also imposed visa restrictions on authorities for their role in undermining democracy. But past sanctions intended to spur political reform have failed to bring about meaningful political change, thus prolonging the continued destruction of the country’s democracy. Whether or not these results will be different remains to be seen, but their ability to bring about change seems increasingly unlikely.
Venezuela’s elections no longer reflect the people’s will, but rather serve as mechanisms for the ruling regime to maintain power. The continuing crisis in Venezuela is a testament to how a combination of political repression, corruption, economic mismanagement and incompetence can dismantle democracy while preserving the ostensible outward appearance of it.
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This article was edited by Mary Hannah Gallagher.
