Last Friday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was sworn into office despite losing last July’s election by over 35 percentage points. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega—two other dictators who regularly rig elections to remain in power—were the only leaders from the hemisphere who attended the small inauguration ceremony, in which Maduro once again pledged to abide by and defend the Venezuelan constitution he has in fact trampled during his 12 years as president.
In what at first glance may seem like an odd twist, the inauguration was held almost 90 minutes earlier than planned, causing Ortega to stumble in late, and only a limited audience of government supporters and foreign ambassadors were allowed to attend. Yet, the surprise early inauguration helped Maduro control the narrative of the day. In fact, since his election loss, governing for Maduro has largely become an exercise in repression and controlling the narrative, much of which has involved efforts to censor and manipulate media coverage of his government.
That coverage is complicated by the fact that events in Venezuela regarding Maduro’s latest stolen term in office are moving quickly, and yet not moving at all. Opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez, who won about 67 percent of the votes in July compared to 30 percent for Maduro, mounted a successful international tour prior to the inauguration, with stops at regional capitals as well as in Washington, where he met with outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden. But he fell short on his promise to attempt to enter the country, remaining unable to fly in from the Dominican Republic after Maduro shut down all borders and threatened his arrest.