Maria Machado wins Venezuelan primary bid to oppose Nicolas Maduro

Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Banned Venezuelan opposition candidate Maria Corina Machado swept a presidential primary to decide who will challenge President Nicolas Maduro in elections in 2024, according to early results out Monday.

The 56-year-old former assemblywoman who has been a thorn in the side of the Maduro regime, leading national protests in 2014 and 2019, had won 93% of Sunday's vote with slightly more than a quarter of ballots counted.

Venezuelans in 28 other countries also took part in the ballot which went off smoothly despite being organized and run without little to no assistance of the electoral commission and authorities ordering internet service providers to block Venezuelan IP addresses from accessing relevant websites.

"Thank you, Venezuela! This is not the end, but the beginning of the end," Machado wrote in a post on X.

Maduro's government rejected the ballot as a sham.

"They are liars, they manipulate, they don't care at all. We already have the results," said Diosdado Cabello, vice president of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela.

However, it is unclear whether Machado will be permitted to run as she was banned in June from elected office for 15 years over alleged fraud and tax violations by Comptroller General Elvis Amoroso, a Maduro supporter who now heads the electoral commission.

The government and opposition leaders agreed on terms for elections to be held in the second half of 2024 at a meeting in Barbados on Tuesday, including allowing parties to choose their candidates, permitting all campaigns equal media access and international observers to come to Venezuela to monitor the poll.

On Wednesday, the United States responded to what it called the "democratic developments" by suspending select sanctions on the country's oil and gas and gold sectors, together with bans on secondary trading of these commodities.

Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian E. Nelson, said the United States welcomed the signing of an electoral roadmap agreement and that the sanctions relief was in line with U.S. sanctions policy and in support of the Venezuelan people.

"Treasury is prepared to amend or revoke authorizations at any time, should representatives of Maduro fail to follow through on their commitments," Nelson warned.