Venezuela Election Chaos Hits White House Race: Republicans Compare Maduro To Biden, Raise Alarm Over Border

A demonstrator reacts when Molotov cocktails hit the ground in front of security forces during protests against election results after Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and his opposition rival Edmundo Gonzalez claimed victory in Sunday's presidential election, in Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela. (Image: Reuters)

Venezuela’s elections, where autocrat Nicolas Maduro was re-elected, could lead to more crises on the US border and fuel misinformation and anti-Democrat rhetoric.

Elections in Venezuela have started impacting the elections in the US as Republicans threaten that if elected, Democrats will turn Washington to Caracas – the Venezuelan capital currently witnessing massive unrest following Maduro’s controversial reelection.

Republicans, who denounce socialism and communism, see Venezuela as a poster-child of left-wing authoritarianism.

Venezuela Elections

Fresh demonstrations were expected in Venezuela Tuesday after three people died and 44 were injured when security forces tried to break up protests triggered by a hotly disputed election result that gave Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro a third term in power.

Maduro considers the results of the election a settled matter. But opposition candidate Edmundo González told a news conference Monday afternoon that his campaign has the proof it needs to show that he was the winner of the election.

González and opposition leader María Corina Machado told supporters gathered outside his campaign headquarters in Caracas that they have obtained more than 70% of the tally sheets from Sunday’s disputed election, and they show González ahead of Maduro.

Security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets Monday at angry protesters challenging the reelection victory claimed by Maduro but disputed by the opposition and questioned by many other countries.

Thousands of people flooded the streets of several neighbourhoods in the capital, chanting “Freedom, freedom!” and “This government is going to fall!”

Republicans fear that the unrest in Venezuela will mean more illegal migrants from the nation to the US, some of which have Republican governments. Democrat governors there have also questioned US President Joe Biden’s border policy.

Cornering Kamala

Nearly 8 million Venezuelans have fled their country over the past decade. Many of them have entered the US.

Republicans are trying to make the border a political liability for US Vice-President and contender Kamala Harris just as it was for President Joe Biden before he ended his reelection campaign.

Republicans say Harris did not do enough to clamp down on illegal immigration in a role they characterise as Biden’s “border czar.” House Republicans and a handful of vulnerable Democrats voted last week to rebuke Harris over the administration’s border policies.

Immigration has been at the center of Trump’s political identity since he announced his first campaign in 2015. He paints a picture of a border that is out of control, threatening national security and the economy. If elected to a second term, he’s pledged to deport millions of people living in the country illegally.

Biden has both sought to crack down on new arrivals at the border and to offer new immigration pathways.

A report by Axios said officials in Colorado’s Denver are tracking the recent unrest in Venezuela to see if that leads to a new surge of arrivals at the US border.

Attacks On Biden

The Republicans have also accused Biden of going soft on Maduro and appeasing him. The Axios report said Donald Trump tried to overthrow Maduro in the 2018 Venezuela elections.

Biden is also being criticised for offering Venezuela relief from oil sanctions in exchange for a free election.

After Joe Biden unveiled plans Monday for sweeping US Supreme Court reforms, some Republicans said that Democrats would resort to Maduro-like tactics to cling to power.

The report by Axios said some Republicans believe that Democrats committed Maduro-like fraud in 2020 and would repeat the same during the upcoming November vote.