Blinken says US has 'serious concerns' about announced result of Venezuelan election

TOKYO -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States has ‘serious concerns’ about the announced result of Venezuela’s hotly contested presidential election that authorities say was won by incumbent Nicolas Maduro.

Speaking in Tokyo on Monday shortly after the announcement was made, Blinken said the U.S. was concerned that the result reflected neither the will nor the votes of the Venezuelan people. He called for election officials to publish the full results transparently and immediately and said the U.S. and the international community would respond accordingly.

“We have seen the announcement just a short while ago by the Venezuelan Electoral Commission," he said. "We have serious concerns that the result announced does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people.”

“It’s critical that every vote be counted fairly and transparently that the electoral authorities immediately share information with the opposition and independent observers without delay and that the electoral authorities publish the tabulation of votes. The international community is watching this very closely and will respond accordingly," Blinken said.

In Venezuela, the announcement of Sunday's election results was delayed by several hours, and the National Electoral Council, which is controlled by Maduro loyalists, said Maduro had secured a majority without releasing tallies from polling booths.

Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was blocked from running. But she said after the council's announcement that the margin of victory for the opposition's candidate, Edmundo González, was “overwhelming” based on voting tallies it had received from campaign representatives from about 40% of ballot boxes nationwide.