Venezuelan Presidential Candidate Left The Country To Seek Asylum Amid Post-Election Crackdown

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Former Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González has left the South American country after seeking asylum in Spain, according to a senior Venezuelan official.

The surprise departure by the candidate who Venezuela’s opposition and several foreign governments consider the legitimate winner of July’s presidential race is a serious blow to efforts to unseat President Nicolás Maduro and comes just days after the government ordered his arrest.

Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said in a message posted on Instagram that González, who has not been seen since the election, had sought refuge in past days at Spain’s embassy in Caracas. She said the government decided to grant González safe passage out of the country to help restore “the country’s political peace and tranquility.”

Neither González nor anyone from Venezuela’s opposition has yet to comment.

González, a 75 year old former diplomat, was a last minute stand in when opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was banned from running. Previously unknown to most Venezuelans, his campaign nonetheless rapidly ignited the hopes of millions of Venezuelans desperate for change after a decade long economic freefall.

While Maduro was declared the winner of the July vote, most western governments have yet to recognize his victory and are instead demanding that authorities publish a breakdown of votes. Meanwhile, tally sheets collected by opposition volunteers from over two-thirds of the electronic voting machines indicate that González won by a more than 2-to-1 margin.

The tally sheets have long been considered the ultimate proof of election results in Venezuela. In previous presidential elections, the National Electoral Council