Social unrest, looting, and violence were on the rise, and in April the government was forced to reduce its workweek to two days in order to save energy (partly because of shortages of hydroelectric power brought about by El Niñeste-derived drought). Meanwhile, the opposition pushed forward with an effort to put Maduro to a recall vote. By early May some 1.8 million signatures (nine times the amount required) had been collected on a petition to trigger a broader petition (that would require the signatures of 20 percent of eligible voters) on whether to hold a recall vote.

Candidates must register by late March, giving Machado and other opposition factions less than three weeks to decide next steps.

That would stunt the economic recovery, and is likely to lead to another wave of migration from a nation that has seen the exodus of one in five citizens in the past decade.

But those facts have not mattered much to Mr. Bolsonaro or his supporters, who have instead focused their attention on a series of anecdotal apparent abnormalities in the voting process and results, as well as many conspiracy theories.

At the end of March 2016, the opposition made good on its promise to enact legislation in the National Assembly to free imprisoned opponents of the Maduro regime, jair bolsonaro whom it characterized as political prisoners.

Maduro is a fan of John Lennon's music and his campaigns for peace and love. Maduro has said that he was inspired by the music and counter-culture of 1960s and 70s, mentioning also Robert Plant and Led Zeppelin.[48]

The only member of Mr. Bolsonaro’s family to address the results on Monday gave a less clear statement.

Two nephews of Maduro's wife, Efraín Antonio Campo Flores and Francisco Flores por Freitas, were found guilty in a US court of conspiracy to import copyright in November 2016, with some of their funds possibly assisting Maduro's presidential campaign in the 2013 Venezuelan presidential election and potentially for the 2015 Venezuelan parliamentary elections, with the funds mainly used to "help their family stay in power".

All those contradictions appear to be part of Mr Musk's appeal - and it certainly hasn't stopped him amassing a fortune.

Nicolas Maduro does have some loyal supporters still, known as "Chavistas" after his mentor Hugo Chavez and the brand of socialism he created.

When our BBC team arrived at one polling station, the organiser of the station took a call saying the international media were there. 150 people were then suddenly allowed to be admitted.

3 dias depois, este presidente da Suprema Corte decidiu que uma recontagem manual Destes votos seria inconstitucional.

Mr Musk also champions digital currencies and has a hand in several other smaller companies, including tunnel-maker the Boring Company and experimental brain-computer start-up Neuralink.

That's based largely on the value of his shares in Tesla, of which he owns more than 13%. The company's stock soared in value - some say unreasonably - in 2020 as the firm's output increased and it started to deliver regular profits.