Venezuela wants to end a dictatorship via Open Sourcing their elections

On July 28, 2024, the Venezuelan National Electoral Council (CNE) announced that Nicolas Maduro won the presidential election with 51% of the votes, while opposition leader Edmundo Gonzales received 44%. This announcement was met with skepticism due to Venezuela's history of disputed elections. Since the era of Hugo Chavez, electoral integrity has been a contentious issue, with every election under both Chavez and Maduro facing allegations of fraud, although conclusive evidence has been lacking. Following the election, Maria Corina Machado, leader of the opposition party MUD, claimed Gonzales had actually won with over 6 million votes, based on data from more than 75% of voting acts. The MUD mobilized tens of thousands of volunteers to secure and digitize voting data within 24 hours, allowing citizens to verify results independently through a dedicated website. The voting process included measures to ensure transparency, such as printed and signed voting acts verified by representatives from both parties at each station. This initiative has sparked public demand for accountability from Maduro's regime and represents a significant step towards open-source electoral data in Venezuela. The approach aims to enhance government transparency and public trust in electoral processes, potentially serving as a model for other nations facing similar democratic challenges.