Durbin Condemns Venezuelan President Maduro For Stealing Another Election From The Venezuelan People

09.12.24

Durbin Condemns Venezuelan President Maduro For Stealing Another Election From The Venezuelan People

In speech on the Senate floor, Durbin also highlights his bill to halt U.S. investment in Venezuela's energy sector until legitimate election results are respected

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke on the Senate floor condemning Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro for falsely claiming that the nation's election was called in his favor, despite refusing to release actual ballot data and detailed election observer data that showed a clear and overwhelming victory for opposition candidate Edmundo González. In his remarks, Durbin also called on the region's democracies to stand firm in not letting Maduro steal another Venezuelan election and create even more suffering and autocracy in Latin America.

Durbin said, "In 2018, six years ago, I visited Venezuela-a once prosperous, albeit imperfect, democracy suffering terrible economic and political decline… I told then-President Maduro that the upcoming election, which was months away, would only be credible if it was monitored and honest. He went ahead with a discredited election anyway, and the result was as predicted-an exodus of millions of desperate people fleeing repression and economic collapse. A few weeks ago, Venezuela held another presidential election in which the regime had arbitrarily blocked key opposition candidates from the ballot and tried to undermine the pre-electoral process."

Durbin continued, "Ten million Venezuelans peacefully voted. Results meticulously documented by credible monitors showed an overwhelming win for this opposition candidate [González]. Despite this sweeping and clear opposition victory, the Maduro regime refused to release results, announced that it had won instead, and arbitrarily arrested thousands of opposition supporters. And it issued an outrageous arrest warrant for González, who had to flee the country. Enough of this madness. Enough of this outright theft of the Venezuelan voters' overwhelming choice for a better future."

Earlier this week, Durbin introduced a bill terminating all U.S. petroleum cooperation and petroleum-related trade with Venezuela until the legitimate results of the recent Venezuelan election are respected. Durbin filed the bill as an amendment to the annual defense authorization bill.

"The entrenched regime clings to power using oil revenues dependent on U.S. involvement. Under my bill, that will end, and so will Maduro's financial strength. It's really that simple," said Durbin. "I also appeal to our democratic allies in the region, including the democracies of the Caribbean, to stand resolute in defense of a sweeping and clear vote by the Venezuelan people. They cannot sit idly by for another six years of regime-inflicted suffering and economic collapse in Venezuela. Our neighbors in Venezuela deserve better."

Video of Durbin's remarks on the floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin's remarks on the floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin's remarks on the floor is available here for TV Stations.

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