Congressman Albio Sires Recognizes Juan Guaidó as Interim President of Venezuela and Calls for A Swift Transition to Democratic Elections 

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congressman Sires officially recognized Juan Guaidó as the constitutionally legitimate Interim President of Venezuela and called for swift elections in the country. 

“In the battle between dictatorship and democracy, we must stand on the side of the Venezuelan people, who are demanding change. Maduro’s reelection was widely denounced as a sham, including by the Organization of American States and the European Union. Venezuela’s Constitution clearly states that when there is no duly elected president, the head of the National Assembly, in this case Juan Guaidó, becomes the interim leader. The National Assembly is the only remaining institution in Venezuela whose current members were democratically elected.    

The U.S. has joined nearly 50 countries in recognizing the government of Juan Guaidó and calling for a return to democracy. This is a global effort to help the Venezuelan people reclaim their freedom and fundamental rights. A Guaidó-led transition must promptly lead to new elections that are free, fair and transparent. 

Maduro has overseen an economic and political collapse that is unprecedented in our hemisphere. With inflation surpassing 1 million percent, nearly 90% of Venezuelans are living in poverty. The country’s homicide rate rivals that of war zones and there are massive shortages of food and medicine. Over three million Venezuelans have already fled the country in a mass exodus that is impacting the entire region. Yet Maduro has responded to the humanitarian crisis with brutal repression, locking up thousands of protesters and dissidents and deploying his security officials and gangs to carry out forced disappearances and torture. While the Venezuelan people suffer, Maduro and his cronies have enriched themselves through money laundering, the drug trade, and plundering the country’s gold reserves. It is time for Venezuelans to reclaim the mantle of democracy; it’s time for Maduro’s reign of terror to come to an end.”