ReutersThe Venezuelan government says opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González has left the country and sought asylum in Spain.
Mr González has been in hiding and a warrant for his arrest was issued after the opposition disputed the results of July’s presidential election – in which the government-controlled National Electoral Council (CNE) declared Nicolás Maduro the winner.
Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said in a social media post that after “voluntarily” seeking refuge at the Spanish embassy in Caracas a few days ago, Mr. Gonzalez asked the Spanish government to grant him political asylum.
She added that Caracas had agreed to give him safe passage and he had left.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said Mr González left the country at his own request and on a Spanish Air Force plane.
He added that the Spanish government is committed to protecting the political rights of all Venezuelans.
Mr González’s lawyer confirmed to AFP that he had left the country for Spain, but gave no further details.
While he was gone, security forces in Venezuela surrounded the Argentine embassy in the capital Caracas..
Six political opponents of President Maduro are taking refuge there. The country’s foreign ministry alleges that terrorist acts are being planned inside.
Venezuela has been in political crisis since the government declared President Maduro the winner of the July 28 election.
The opposition claims it has evidence that Mr González won by a large margin and has uploaded detailed vote counts online showing Mr González convincingly defeated Mr Maduro.
Several countries, including the United States, the European Union and several Latin American nations, have refused to recognize President Maduro as the winner unless Caracas releases detailed voting data.
President Maduro’s government has arrested more than 2,400 people since the election, creating what the United Nations has called a “climate of fear.”
ReutersMr González has been in hiding since 30 July for fear of arrest following claims by top government politicians that he should be “imprisoned”.
The attorney general’s office, which has close ties to the Maduro government, has charged Mr. González with conspiracy and falsification of documents, among other “serious crimes.”
The 75-year-old was largely unknown until March this year, when the main opposition coalition registered him as a candidate.
The opposition’s initial choice for presidential candidacy was María Corina Machado, who won the open primary with 93% of the vote.
But when her efforts to overturn a ban on her running for public office were rejected by the government-controlled government, the opposition had to find an alternative candidate.
After another opposition candidate was also disqualified, the opposition put forward Mr. González’s name.
Fearing they too might be barred from running, the opposition kept Mr González behind the scenes, while Ms Machado traveled the country urging people to vote for him.
On election night, Mr. González appeared alongside María Corina Machado to protest the CNE’s claim that Mr. Maduro was the winner with 52% of the vote.
