Gonzalez Urrutia of the Venezuelan opposition is recognized by the US as the "president-elect."

Four months after a contentious election in which incumbent Nicolas Maduro declared victory amidst allegations of fraud, the United States announced Tuesday that it recognizes opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as Venezuela’s “president-elect.”

“The Venezuelan people spoke resoundingly on July 28 and made (Gonzalez Urrutia) the president-elect,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote in a post on X. “Democracy demands respect for the will of the voters.”

Although President Joe Biden had said the opposition party had more votes a few days after the July 28 election, the remark was the first time the United States has called Gonzalez Urrutia the “president-elect.”

Despite the Venezuelan government’s failure to disclose comprehensive polling data, Maduro declared an electoral victory.

Due to a pending arrest order, Gonzalez Urrutia has fled to Spain, and Maria Corina Machado, the leader of the opposition party, has also gone into hiding.

In addition to drawing criticism from other parts of the world, notably the European Union, Maduro’s contentious reelection sparked widespread protests in Venezuela that left 28 people dead, almost 200 injured, and about 2,400 demonstrators detained—224 of whom have since been released.