Costa Rica, Lima Group call for urgent audit of Venezuelan elections

In a joint statement, the governments of Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay and Peru said that the audit should “clear up the controversy about the results of those elections and determine the true pronouncement of the Venezuelan people.” The ruling Venezuelan party won 17 of the 23 states in dispute in the elections. While it controlled 20 before Sunday’s elections, the government of President Nicolás Maduro qualified the result as a major victory, since polls showed the opposition as the clear favorite in the elections. More…