Venezuela held an election for an oil-rich region. The main problem is it belongs to another country
CNN
Venezuelans on Sunday for the first time elected a governor and other lawmakers for Essequibo, an oil-rich region that Venezuela has laid claim to even though it is widely recognized as being part of neighboring Guyana.
Venezuelans on Sunday for the first time elected a governor and other lawmakers for Essequibo, an oil-rich region that Venezuela has laid claim to even though it is widely recognized as being part of neighboring Guyana. Essequibo’s 125,000 inhabitants, who account for more than 15% of the English-speaking country’s population, did not take part in Sunday’s election. The vote, which was widely criticized by Guyanese officials, instead saw Venezuelans pick a new governor, six deputies to the National Assembly of Venezuela, and seven to a regional legislative assembly. It is unclear how the officials, once elected, plan on running the territory, which Guyana governs. The election is the latest provocation in a long-running territory dispute between Venezuela and Guyana. It comes more than a year after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro ordered the creation of a new state within the territory, which is roughly the size of Florida, called “Guayana Esequiba,” following a referendum that saw Venezuelan voters approving the move. Guyana had called Venezuela’s actions a step towards annexation and an “existential” threat as the specter of armed conflict loomed over the region.
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