Venezuela: Opposition Primaries Field Narrows as Superlano Withdraws

Opposition primaries pre-candidate for the Venezuelan far-right party Popular Will (VP), Freddy Superlano, withdrew from the race and announced his endorsement of María Corina Machado of Vente Venezuela party. The far-right opposition’s internal electoral contest has been plagued by resignations and organizational complaints that are jeopardizing a credible outcome.

During a press conference on Friday, October 13, Superlano announced his withdrawal from the primaries. He further announced that his party will support the Vente Venezuela candidate, María Corina Machado.

The VP politician stated that “on the street it is known that the winner of the primary is María Corina.” Therefore, he put his party’s “structure inside and outside the country” at the disposal of Machado.

Venezuela: Justice First Party Refuses to Endorse any Candidate in Opposition Primaries

“We put all our capabilities in support of the Venezuelan liberation cause,” said Superlano. “We say to María Corina: we give you our people. I am sure that you will win.”

This is not the first time that the Venezuelan extreme right has made an electoral alliance. In 2014, the fugitive from the Venezuelan justice system, Leopoldo López, founder and head of Popular Will party, made an alliance with María Corina Machado and promoted violent armed protests dubbed “La Salida,” aimed at overthrowing the government of Nicolás Maduro.

The new union between VP and Vente Venezuela leaves open the possibility that another violent coup plan will emerge, in the event that María Corina Machado wins the primaries and cannot register with the National Electoral Council (CNE) as presidential candidate for 2024 because she is disqualified.

This would not be surprising, since months ago, Antonio Ledezma, another fugitive from the justice system, and member of Machado’s political team, stated that there were plans for a military operation for a possible “uprising of the society” to fight for Machado’s registration at the CNE for the 2024 presidential elections.

Henrique Capriles Abandons Opposition Primaries Race

Freddy Superlano’s resignation comes six days after Henrique Capriles, another disqualified politician, withdrew from the opposition primary. However, his party Justice First (PJ) clarified that they will not endorse any other candidate in the opposition primaries scheduled for October 22.

Superlano’s resignation was a matter of time, as some Venezuelan journalists had announced that possibility since last weekend. Moreover, PSUV’s Diosdado Cabello commented on Superlano’s possible resignation on Wednesday on his TV program Con el Mazo Dando. Cabello said that it was a strategy already agreed upon between Machado and Leopoldo López who have a long history of carrying out destabilization attempts, and they are also relatives.

COPEI pre-candidate also resigns
COPEI party pre-candidate Roberto Enríquez also announced his resignation on Friday. “We are withdrawing our candidacy because we have considered that we do not have the time, that the media exposure we have had has not allowed us to transmit the strength and power of the message that we have,” Enríquez said at a press conference, after announcing his withdrawal.

He clarified that he is now going to participate in the primary “as a guardian” and that he will support the winner of the primaries. With Enríquez’s withdrawal, there are now three candidates who have resigned from the opposition’s internal elections. He did not announce any endorsements, unlike Superlano.

(RedRadioVE) by Ana Perdigon with Orinoco Tribune content

Translation: Orinoco Tribune

OT/JRE/SC