Machado formally wins Venezuela primary, government warns against foreign interference

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado attends an event to receive the credential as winner of the October 22 opposition's primary election, in Caracas, Venezuela October 26, 2023. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria

CARACAS (Reuters) - Former lawmaker Maria Corina Machado was formally declared the victor of the Venezuelan opposition's weekend presidential primary on Thursday, as a government official warned foreign diplomats not to interfere in the electoral process.

The country's attorney general said on Wednesday his office has launched a criminal investigation into the primary and members of its organizing commission.