Venezuela orders arrest of former presidential candidate Edmundo González

A Venezuelan judge has issued an arrest warrant for former opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González concerning a criminal investigation into July's election results.

The order was issued on Monday following a request from authorities, who accuse President Nicolás Maduro's opponent of various crimes, including conspiracy, document forgery, and power usurpation.

The move marks the latest suppressive measure against Venezuela's opposition, just a month after electoral authorities declared Maduro the winner of a third six-year term in office.

Authorities pursued the arrest warrant after González failed to appear for questioning by prosecutors on three consecutive occasions. The former diplomat, 75, has not been seen publicly since the day following the vote.

The European Union does not recognise either candidate and demands the release of all electoral records.

"Maduro has lost all touch with reality," opposition politician María Corina Machado wrote on social media platform X after the arrest warrant was issued. "The arrest warrant issued by the regime to threaten President-Elect Edmundo Gonzalez crosses a new line that only strengthens the resolve of our movement."

"Venezuelans and democracies around the world are more united than ever in our quest for freedom," she added.

At the centre of the scandal are records, pursued by prosecutors, which have long been considered the definitive proof of Venezuela's election results.

Venezuelans vote using electronic machines, which record votes and also provide a paper receipt.

Each of the 30,000 electronic voting machines used in the elections on 28 July transmitted their records to the National Electoral Council.

Hours after the polls closed, electoral authorities loyal to the