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href="http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/In-Predictable-Move-US-Condemns-Venezuela-Constituent-Assembly-20170731-0003.html">http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/In-Predictable-Move-US-Condemns-Venezuela-Constituent-Assembly-20170731-0003.html</a></font>
<h1 id="reader-title">In Predictable Move, US Condemns Venezuela
Constituent Assembly<br>
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<div id="reader-estimated-time">July 31, 2017<br>
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<p>Venezuela's historic National Constituent Assembly
election on Sunday has provoked condemnation from
several Latin American countries. Peru, Colombia, and
Mexico have refused to recognize the elections results
despite The Council of Electoral Specialist of Latin
America, CEELA, determination that </p>
<p>The United States condemned the elections for
Venezuela’s National Constituent Assembly Sunday, after
President Donald Trump's administration made good on its
threat to impose new sanctions on the government if it
went through with the constitutionally approved ANC last
week.</p>
<p>With no irony intended, the United States criticized
the process as an attempt to “weaken the right of the
Venezuelan people to self-determination.”</p>
<p>In a press statement, the U.S. State Department said,
"We will continue to take strong and swift actions
against the architects of authoritarianism in Venezuela,
including those who participate in the National
Constituent Assembly as a result of today’s flawed
election."</p>
<p>Over eight million people voted in Venezuela's election
Sunday, a turnout of <a
href="http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Over-8-Million-Vote-in-Venezuelas-National-Constituent-Assembly-Election-20170730-0040.html"
target="_blank">over 41 percent</a>, according to
electoral authorities.</p>
<p>Voting hours were extended by due to the overwhelming
response, as hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans from
across the country lined up long before dawn to cast
their ballots for the 545 candidates.</p>
<p>Voting hours were extended by due to the overwhelming
response, as hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans from
across the country lined up long before dawn to cast
their ballots for the 545 candidates.</p>
<p>The voting process was peaceful with the exception of a
few isolated incidents of violence by opposition
supporters who protested and staged guarimbas in a bid
to shut down the election.</p>
<p>However, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki
Haley said Sunday that the election for a Constituent
Assembly was a "step toward dictatorship" and that the
United States will not accept an illegitimate government
in Caracas.</p>
<p>The State Department, however, found legitimacy in the
July 16 referendum organized by sectors of the
opposition which was non-binding and informal. Since the
opposition destroyed ballots after the vote, there is no
way of knowing how many people actually voted, which
also saw people easily vote more than once. But the
right-wing alleges that about 7.1 million people voted.</p>
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San Francisco, CA 94110
415 863.9977
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