Ruptly
"Thousands of Colombian citizens residing in Venezuela turned out on Sunday at designated polling stations to participate in the first round of Colombia’s presidential elections, in a key voting day for the Colombian diaspora in the neighboring country. Footage recorded in Caracas showed Colombian citizens casting their ballots at the Colombian Consulate, one of the locations set up for overseas voting. This marks the first time since 2018 that Colombians living in Venezuela have been able to vote in a Colombian presidential election, after the two countries severed diplomatic relations in 2019. Ties were later restored during the administration of President Gustavo Petro. “It’s something very positive. Venezuela gives us the opportunity to come here, to the Colombian Consulate, and exercise our right to vote for our country,” said one voter, Lorena González. “Our roots are our roots. Colombia is what we love most,” added another voter, Damaris Tobacia. According to figures from Colombia’s National Civil Registry, a total of 180,782 Colombians are eligible to vote in Venezuela, making it the country with the third-largest number of Colombian voters abroad, behind the United States, with 454,262 eligible voters, and Spain, with 307,996. Diplomatic relations between Colombia and Venezuela were suspended from 2019 to 2022 during the administration of former Colombian President Iván Duque, who rejected the legitimacy of Nicolás Maduro and recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president. The diplomatic rupture led to the closure of consular services and affected millions of citizens in both countries. Diplomatic ties were restored in August 2022 following Gustavo Petro’s inauguration as President of Colombia."
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