U.S. blacklists Venezuelan lawmakers, alleging election manipulation

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on Venezuelan lawmakers it accused of supporting the country's leftist leader, Nicolas Maduro, and his planned legislative elections that Washington has said will likely be rigged.

The Treasury in a statement accused the five blacklisted individuals of having acted as part of a scheme to manipulate parliamentary elections set to take place in December by "placing control of Venezuela’s opposition parties in the hands of politicians affiliated with Nicolas Maduro’s regime, undermining any credible opposition challenge to that regime."