"We thank you. We cannot announce the result, but we can show you our faces. It was a victory for everyone. It was a victory that will help us build the future. Of course, we will have to wait for the results of the National Electoral Council, since we respect the laws of our country and the constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela," the head of the incumbent president's campaign headquarters, the speaker of parliament Jorge Rodriguez, said at a press conference.
The headquarters thanked the National Electoral Council for the "perfect work" of the electoral system, which allowed the elections to be held "in absolute calm and absolute peace."
Since 6 a.m. (10:00 GMT) on Sunday, Venezuelans have been participating in the presidential election, where nine opposition candidates and the incumbent President Nicolas Maduro were vying for the post of the country's leader. Polling stations began to close at 18 p.m. local time (22:00 GMT). The CNE told Sputnik that polling stations with queues of voters at the time of the official closing would continue to operate until the last visitor.
The first ballot with preliminary voting results will be published by the CNE on Monday night after the counted results "become irreversible." According to pre-election polls, of the ten candidates for the post of head of state, the ones with a real chance of being elected are Maduro, who is seeking a second re-election, and the representative of the United Democratic Platform (PUD) coalition, former diplomat Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia.
Urrutia called for calm at the polling stations and urged citizens to remain inside them until the votes are officially confirmed.
"We reiterate to all citizens that they have the right to participate in citizen verification," he wrote on X.
The winner of the presidential elections in Venezuela will take office on January 10, 2025, and his term of office will be six years.