Venezuela voting conditions better, but some candidates blocked unfairly -EU

Isabel Santos, member of the European Parliament and Chief Observer of the 2021 EU Electoral Observation Mission in Venezuela, addresses the media with an initial report on Venezuela's weekend regional elections, in Caracas, Venezuela November 23, 2021. REUTERS/Fausto Torrealba

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Venezuelan regional and local elections last weekend were held under better conditions than those of previous contests, the head of a European Union's observation mission said on Tuesday, while declining to say whether the vote was free and fair.

The Sunday vote was the first time in four years the country's opposition has run candidates, though it suffered a resounding defeat with the ruling party winning at least 18 out of 23 governorships.