Industrial engineer and former lawmaker Maria Corina Machado addresses supporters as she reacts to the vote count, after Venezuelans voted in a primary to choose a unity opposition candidate to face Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro in his probable re-election bid in 2024, in Caracas, Venezuela October 23, 2023. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria
CARACAS (Reuters) - Industrial engineer Maria Corina Machado declared victory overnight in the Venezuelan opposition's presidential primary, after she tallied a huge portion of votes with the count just over a quarter finished.
The opposition held the contest to choose a unity candidate to face President Nicolas Maduro in his probable re-election bid next year, amid pledges by the United States to roll back sanctions relief if the government fails to lift bans preventing some opposition figures from holding office.
