CARACAS – Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said there was “overwhelming evidence” that Edmundo González had won, despite President Nicolás Maduro’s claim of victory.

The United States on Thursday night recognized Venezuela’s opposition presidential candidate, Edmundo González, as the winner of the country’s disputed election. The announcement, by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, comes despite a claim by the country’s authoritarian president, Nicolás Maduro, and by the government-controlled electoral body, that Mr. Maduro had won the Sunday election.

Mr. Maduro has yet to produce clear evidence of a victory, and election officials have failed to provide a vote count. Mr. González’s campaign says it has receipts from more than 80 percent of voting machines that indicate he won by an insurmountable margin. While some leaders have voiced support for Mr. González in recent days, the United States is the largest nation to recognize him as the winner. The decision is sure to anger Mr. Maduro, who has long characterized Washington as meddling imperialists. But it’s unclear if the announcement will have any effect on Mr. Maduro’s grip on power.

Mr. Blinken, in a statement, said that “given the overwhelming evidence, it is clear to the United States and, most importantly, to the Venezuelan people that Edmundo González Urrutia won the most votes.” “We congratulate Edmundo González Urrutia on his successful campaign,” Mr. Blinken continued. “Now is the time for the Venezuelan parties to begin discussions on a respectful, peaceful transition in accordance with Venezuelan electoral law.” Mr. Maduro did not immediately respond to the statement. But just as it was issued, he wrote on X, the social media platform, that he was willing to talk to the United States “if the U.S. government is willing to respect sovereignty and stop threatening Venezuela.” (NYT) …[+]