Edmundo González Urrutia: The candidate of the Venezuelan opposition
The candidate of the Venezuelan opposition has been defined, and it is diplomat Edmundo González Urrutia, a leader with a long trajectory in the field of international relations.
The candidate of the Venezuelan opposition was decided after the Plataforma Unitaria Democrática (PUD), Venezuela’s main opposition coalition, announced on Friday night, April 19, that the unitary candidate to face Nicolás Maduro on July 28 in the presidential elections will be former ambassador Edmundo González Urrutia.
On a day that is a patriotic date, April 19, the decision was made to define the candidate of the Venezuelan opposition.
Edmundo González Urrutia was nominated by the Mesa de la Unidad Democrática party, replacing María Corina Machado, who is disqualified by the Chavista regime from holding public office.
But González, in spite of being registered, was under the figure of reserve; and the candidacy is expected to be confirmed; other figures were among the options, such as Manuel Rosales.
The information was confirmed by Omar Barboza, general secretary of the PUD.
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“Venezuela and the democrats of the world, I want to give a very good news to the people of Venezuela, the Unitary Democratic Platform has just unanimously approved the candidacy of Ambassador Edmundo González Urrutia as the unity candidate, supported by all the factors”, expressed Barboza, in declarations to local media.
Edmundo González Urrutia: The candidate of the Venezuelan opposition
It should be recalled that the Venezuelan opposition candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia was originally registered as a provisional candidate and today becomes a definitive candidate.
Furthermore, his registration was admitted by the National Electoral Council and was not objected by anyone.
Gonzalez Urrutia was provisionally nominated at the end of March in the midst of the obstruction to the candidacies of Maria Corina Machado and Corina Yoris.
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The Governor of the State of Zulia, Manuel Rosales, Hugo Chavez’s rival in 2006, declined his candidacy, which he registered, also at the last minute, with his party Un Nuevo Tiempo (UNT), which is part of the coalition.
With Gonzalez Urrutia, there are 13 candidates registered for the elections, besides Manuel Rosales, who will resign his candidacy, Luis Brito, Luis Ratti, Enrique Marquez, Benjamin Rausseo, Luis Eduardo Martinez, Daniel Ceballos, Antonio Ecarri, Juan Carlos Alvarado, Javier Bertucci, Claudio Fermin and Nicolas Maduro.
About Edmundo González Urrutia
Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia graduated as an internationalist from the Universidad Central de Venezuela (UCV) and in 1981 obtained a master’s degree in international relations from the American University in Washington, D.C., United States.
González is a career diplomat and has held positions in the General Directorate of International Policy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) between 1994 and 1998.
He also headed the Strategic Analysis and Planning Committee within the agency.
Between 1998 and 2002 he was Venezuela’s Ambassador to Argentina. Previously, between 1991 and 1993, he served as Venezuela’s ambassador to Algeria.
The Venezuelan opposition candidate is also alternate director and coordinator of the International System Follow-up Working Group of the Fermín Toro Institute of Parliamentary Studies, together with other prominent Venezuelan lawyers and politicians.
In mid 2024, González’s digitized book on Caracciolo Parra Pérez, a volume published in 2010 in the Colección Biblioteca Biográfica Venezolana, edited by El Nacional and Bancaribe, was made available to the public, informed the National Academy of History.
Among other publications of his authorship, coordination or participation in recent years: Democracia, paz y desarrollo; Venezuela y Colombia: una relación de encuentros y desencuentros; Venezuela- Argentina: dos siglos de visiones compartidas; La lucha internacional contra la corrupción y sus repercusiones en Venezuela.
