Venezuelan election results raise doubts on July 28

The Venezuelan presidential election held on July 28 raised significant concerns regarding its legitimacy. Initial results announced by the National Electoral Council indicated that Nicolas Maduro received 5,150,092 votes, or 51.2%, while his main rival, Edmundo Gonzalez, garnered 4,445,978 votes, or 44.2%. The precision of these results, reported to a single decimal point, raised eyebrows among mathematicians and analysts. Typically, election results are rounded to two decimal places, which would allow for a reasonable margin of error. Mathematician Etienne Ghys highlighted that the exactness of the percentages suggested a highly improbable coincidence. The chance of both candidates' vote counts aligning so perfectly, given the total number of votes cast, was estimated to be around one in 100 million. This statistical anomaly led to suspicions of electoral fraud, as the results seemed too calculated and precise for a legitimate election. The implications of these findings are profound, as they cast doubt on the integrity of the electoral process in Venezuela. The announcement of results based on only 80% of the electronic votes further fueled skepticism. Observers noted that a more realistic approach would have involved rounding the figures to avoid such mathematical improbabilities. In light of these concerns, the election results have been met with widespread skepticism, suggesting that the Maduro administration may have manipulated the voting figures to secure a favorable outcome. The situation underscores the ongoing challenges to democracy and transparency in Venezuela's political landscape.