The Venezuelan opposition denounces a maneuver to stop the candidacy of Corina Yoris

“I alert Venezuelans and the world of the maneuver underway to prevent the registration in the National Electoral Council of the candidate of the entire democratic unity, Corina Yoris,” María Corina Machado, current leader of the Venezuelan opposition and initial candidate for the July 28 presidential elections.

The appointment of academic Corina Yoris as a substitute candidate following Machado's disqualification was received with unanimous joy by opposition public opinion, which nevertheless fears that Chavismo will also try to stop her candidacy.

“The authorities must verify at the State level whether the candidates meet the requirements, if not they have some type of judicial process,” stated Elvis Amoroso, president of the National Electoral Council, alluding to the problem of disqualifications.

“This is not about taking away political rights from anyone, as has been stated.

The rights can be exercised, but there are some restrictions, like anywhere in the world.”

Some sources report tensions precisely within the National Electoral Council, a body in which sectors of the moderate opposition, such as Democratic Action and Un Nuevo Tiempo, have two of the five main rectors on their side.

The spokespersons for Machado's campaign committee have denounced that the electronic devices of the Electoral Branch have not yet accepted the passwords, or access to the system, of the opposition cards admitted to participate in the next elections, which in this case are only the of the Un Nuevo Tiempo party, and that of the Unitary Platform - signatory of the Barbados agreement - as an alliance of all opposition parties.

Some electoral technicians have responded in a generic way, without direct allusions, to Machado's claim, stating that certain political sectors were not complying with the registration procedures.

María Corina Machado's conversations with Manuel Rosales, the leader of Un Nuevo Tiempo, and other related actors, to reach an agreement with the party card that honors the popular mandate of the primary elections on October 22, have taken place in good terms, contrary to what many - Chavismo first - expected.

As a presidential option, María Corina Machado maintains popularity ratings close to 60%, tripling those of Nicolás Maduro.

Quickly, the high government, which has worked to divide and confront the opposition factions, has let some politicians know that they are not willing to let Corina Yoris continue with the Un Nuevo Tiempo or the Unitary Platform cards.

The deadline for applications expires on Monday, March 25.

Theoretically, all candidatures, once accepted, will go through a short period in which there may be challenges.

“Will the Unitary Platform (upon realizing that it will be impossible to participate with a Machado candidate) join the strategy of declaring the election illegitimate, and end up in the same abstention process as in 2018, or will it decide to split before the deadline and nominate a candidate of your own?

“Will the Platform decide to agree with any of the parties with an active card on a candidate who can participate to protect itself from the possible vacuum?”

Luis Vicente León, political analyst, economist and director of the firm Datanalisis, asks on his social networks in a long post of reflections.

María Corina Machado has declared that she is “aware of the regime's challenge” and has promised to have political responses “to each of their maneuvers to prevent us from participating.

“No one is going to take us off the electoral route.”

In an unusually hermetic environment, new hypotheses begin to emerge in the bowels of the opposition.

During these days, some dissident opposition politicians from the Unitary Platform, belonging to minority formations, have been able to present their candidacies before the Electoral Power, without major complications, all of whom cultivate a very moderate line against Chavismo and on some occasions have agreed with Nicolás Maduro, acting in favor of his interests, in certain legislative, political and institutional matters.

This is Luis Eduardo Martínez, who heads the dissident faction of Democratic Action;

Antonio Ecarri, nominated by his party, Alianza Lápiz, and the organizations Cambiemos and Avanzada Progresista;

José Brito, from Primero Venezuela;

and Benjamín Rausseo, a well-known comedian and businessman called

El Conde del Guácharo,

who participates with an independent formula.

Each one has their own discourse, but they have taken great pains to present themselves as a “third way”, in the face of the excesses and errors of “the two sides”.

On Monday, most likely with complete comfort, the acting president, Nicolás Maduro, nominated by the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and some allied formations, will have to register his candidacy.

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