Edmundo González Urrutia, the Venezuelan opposition candidate who challenged President Nicolás Maduro’s disputed re-election on July 28, has left the country and is seeking asylum in Spain. González, who had been in hiding for over a month, departed aboard a Spanish Air Force plane at his own request.
“After taking refuge voluntarily at the Spanish embassy in Caracas a few days ago, (Mr González Urrutia) asked the Spanish government for political asylum,” Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez announced on social media.
The Venezuelan government agreed to grant him safe passage out of the country.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares confirmed that “Edmundo González, at his request, is flying to Spain on a Spanish Air Force plane,” adding that Spain is “committed to the political rights” of all Venezuelans.
The opposition and several foreign governments, including the United States, European Union, and Latin American nations, have refused to recognize Maduro’s victory in the July 28 election.
They claim to have evidence that González won by a significant margin, but Venezuela’s electoral authority has not released detailed voting data, blaming a cyberattack that observers say lacks evidence.
After the election, Venezuelan prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for González over his insistence that he was the rightful winner. He had been summoned to appear before prosecutors three times but remained in hiding, fearing imprisonment. His lawyer, Joel Garcia, stated that if charged with the government’s accusations, González could face up to 30 years in jail.
The disputed election has led to a political crisis in Venezuela and post-election violence that has claimed 27 lives, injured 192 people, and resulted in around 2,400 arrests, according to government figures. Maduro’s government claims he won re-election with 52% of the vote, while the opposition says its own tally shows González winning 67%.
González, a retired diplomat, emerged as the opposition’s last-minute presidential candidate after the main opposition figure was barred from running. His candidacy ignited hopes for change among Venezuelans amid the country’s economic free fall under Maduro’s leadership, which has seen GDP drop 80% and over 7 million citizens emigrate.