SUMMARY
The U.S. says it has serious concerns about the election results in Venezuela after authoritarian leader Nicolás Maduro declared a victory in a tumultuous presidential race. Exit polls showed a blowout win for the opposition party. Both Maduro and the opposition have claimed a win, but most world leaders held back from recognizing the results
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KEY TERMS
authoritarian — favoring or enforcing strict obedience to authority, especially that of the government, at the expense of personal freedom.
sanction — an official order, such as the stopping of trade, that is taken against a country in order to make it obey international law
WARM-UP QUESTIONS
- Who is Nicolás Maduro? Who is Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia?
- Which countries are supporting Nicolás Maduro's claim to the presidency?
- What are the sanctions that the United States imposed on Venezuela?
- When did Nicolás Maduro first take office?
- How has Nicolás Maduro manipulated the results of the election, according to critics?
FOCUS QUESTIONS
Several countries are concerned with the fairness of Venezuela's voting process and are demanding further evidence. Nicolás Maduro seems unwilling to cooperate and is quickly breaking ties with those who disagree with him. How do you think this issue can be resolved? Do you think other countries should get involved? Explain why or why not.
Media literacy: Can you think of any other presidential elections where the accuracy of the results was called into question by one of the parties? How were those issues reported in the media?
Alternative: See, Think, Wonder: What did you notice? What did the story make you think? What would you want to learn more about?
FOR MORE
What students can do:
Learn about Mexico's recent historic election using this Daily News Lesson.
Learn how polarization and division lead to political violence using this Daily News Lesson.
This post was written by Gianfranco Beran, a senior at Amherst College, and an intern with PBS NewsHour Classroom, and edited by NewsHour's Luke Gerwe.
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