LONDON (REUTERS, AFP) - Turnout figures in Venezuela's Constitutional Assembly election were manipulated up by least 1 million votes, Smartmatic, a company which has worked with Venezuela since 2004 on its voting system, said on Wednesday (Aug 2).

"We know, without any doubt, that the turnout of the recent election for a National Constituent Assembly was manipulated," Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said at a news briefing in London.

Mugica said Smartmatic, which has provided electronic voting technology for elections around the world, was able to detect the overstated officially announced turnout because of Venezuela's automated election system.

"We estimate the difference between the actual participation and the one announced by authorities is at least 1 million votes," he said.

Mugica declined to directly answer whether the manipulated turnout numbers changed the result of the election, in which authorities said 8.1 million people voted.

The election of the legislative super-body has been decried by critics as illegitimate and designed to give the unpopular government of President Nicolas Maduro powers to rewrite the constitution and sideline the opposition-led congress.

Mugica said the authorities in Venezuela would likely not be sympathetic to his comments and that he had not yet passed the evidence to the Venezuela's electoral council.

The National Elections Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to internal electoral council data previously reviewed by Reuters, only 3.7 million people had voted by 5.30pm in Venezuela's election on Sunday.

Venezuelan authorities did not respond to a request for comment on that reviewed data.

Officials said Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro plans to swear in a new assembly with extraordinary powers on Wednesday, as he moves to shore up his rule in the face of domestic resistance and international condemnation.

The 545 members of the so-called Constituent Assembly, which includes Maduro’s wife and son, were to be sworn in at a concert arena, the president’s press office said.

Assembly members will be seated Thursday in the main chamber of the now opposition-controlled National Assembly, the office said. </s> CARACAS, VENEZUELA—Caracas residents blocked streets with broken concrete and twisted metal and flaming piles of trash Tuesday to protest the socialist president’s bid to rewrite the constitution amid a deepening political crisis. President Nicolas Maduro signed a decree Monday to begin the process of rewriting the country’s charter. Opposition leaders called the planned constitutional assembly a ploy to put off regional elections scheduled for this year and a presidential election that was to be held in 2018. Polling suggests the socialists would lose both those elections badly at a time of widespread anger over triple-digit inflation and shortages of food and other goods. Speaking hours after yet another big anti-government march ended in rock throwing and tear gas, Maduro said a new constitution was needed to restore peace. “This will be a citizens’ assembly made up of workers,” the president said Monday. “The day has come brothers. Don’t fail me now.”

Venezuelans President Nicolas Maduro says he’s open to talk with opposition on crisis Venezuela opposition asks Wall Street to cut off Maduro as protests continue The president was vague about how members of the constitutional assembly would be chosen. He hinted some would selected by voters, but many observers expect the selection process to favour the socialists. If the constitutional process goes forward, opposition leaders will need to focus on getting at least some sympathetic figures included in the assembly. That could distract them from organizing the near-daily street protests that have kept up for four weeks, political analyst Luis Vicente Leon said. “It’s a way of calling elections that uses up energy but does not carry risk, because it’s not a universal, direct and secret vote,” Leon said. “And it has the effect of pushing out the possibility of elections this year and probably next year as well.”

Venezuela’s constitution was last rewritten in 1999, early in the 14-year presidency of the late Hugo Chavez, who launched a socialist revolution in the oil-exporting nation. Chavez called his new constitution the best in the world, and promised it would last centuries. He carried around a blue pocket-sized version of the document, and would often whip it out and say, “This is our Bible. After the Bible, this.” At the height of his popularity, people would mob him to ask that he sign their copies. The opposition immediately seized on Maduro’s proposal for a new charter as evidence that his mentor’s revolution lies in shambles. The president of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, Julio Borges, called a constitutional assembly a “giant fraud” by Maduro and his allies designed to keep them in power. Borges said it would deny Venezuelans the right to express their views at the ballot box, and he urged the military to prevent the “coup” by Maduro. “What the Venezuelan people want isn’t to change the constitution but to change Maduro through voting,” he said. The opposition called for another major demonstration Wednesday. Police repressed scattered protests Tuesday with tear gas, as they have nearly daily for weeks. At least 29 people have died in the unrest of the past month and hundreds have been injured. On Tuesday, the government suspended for 180 days the right to carry guns.

The unrest began in reaction to an attempt to nullify the opposition controlled-congress, but has become a vehicle for people to vent their fury at Venezuela’s economic ruin and violent crime. Residents manning the barricades that choked streets across the capital Tuesday vowed to protest until Maduro leaves office. “Unlike some of these young people, I remember a time before the socialists. Now is not the time for fear,” said 36 year-old chauffeur Ricardo Herrera as he arranged trash and pieces of concrete into a street barricade in front of his apartment building. Herrera had so far sat out the protests because he had to get to work, but decided after Maduro’s announcement that he could no longer stand by. “No one is going to work today. If we back down now, we’ll be under their boot for the rest of our lives,” he said. </s> CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced on Monday a national vote to create a new "constituent" National Assembly legislature in order to defuse a bitter political conflict after a month of anti-government protests.

Opponents say the move is another attempt to sideline the current opposition-led National Assembly and keep the unpopular Maduro in power in the midst of a bruising recession and unrest that has led to 29 deaths in the last month. </s> CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The CEO of the voting technology company Smartmatic said today results of Venezuela's election for an all-powerful constituent assembly were off by at least 1 million votes.

Antonio Mugica said results recorded by his systems and those reported by Venezuela's National Electoral Council indicate "without any doubt" that official turnout figures were inflated.

Smartmatic was created by Venezuelans and began providing electronic voting machines in 2004 during the presidency of the late Hugo Chavez.

"Even in moments of deep political conflict and division we have been satisfied with the voting process and the count has been completely accurate," Mugica told reporters in London. "It is, therefore, with the deepest regret that we have to report that the turnout figures on Sunday, 30 July, for the Constituent Assembly in Venezuela were tampered with."

President Nicolas Maduro's government announced late Sunday that more than 8 million Venezuelans had participated in the election for constituent assembly that will be granted virtually unlimited powers. His count was put into question by at least one independent exit poll, showing turnout was less than half that number.

The claim is certain to fuel further discord over the assembly, which Maduro has vowed to use to target his foes. Opposition leaders boycotted the election, arguing voting terms were rigged to favor the ruling socialist party. Nearly 7.6 million people voted in a symbolic referendum rejecting the assembly two weeks before the vote.

The assembly is expected to be sworn into office Thursday and the opposition is calling on Venezuelans to protest.

On Monday, two prominent opposition leaders were dragged from their homes by heavily armed security agents and thrown in a military prison Tuesday, drawing condemnation from the United States and some Latin American countries. But many other nations and international organizations were silent or limited themselves to expressions of concern. </s> After months of protests, millions are called upon to choose representatives of an assembly to redraft the constitution.

After months of protests and clashes, with more than 100 people killed, Venezuelans are being called on to choose the members of a new National Constituent Assembly that will be tasked with drafting a new constitution.

In 1999, the then newly elected President Hugo Chavez and voters supported the initiative.

The difference now is that Sunday's election was ordered by decree, with no referendum indicating that a majority wants a change.

Venezuelans will answer one question: Who should represent you in the assembly?

Anticipating possible violence, the government has banned protests.

But the opposition has called people to the streets.

"Extend the barricades until tomorrow and everybody go to the streets on Sunday to demand the transformation of Venezuela," Freddy Guevara, an opposition congressman, said on Twitter. "This is a tough, conflictive time that we did not look for, but that will only hasten the fall of this government."

So what does this process entail? Below, we answer key questions:

An elected temporary parliament that has the mandate to draft or reform the Constitution.

On July 30, Venezuelans will choose the members of this parliament.

President Maduro invoked article 347 of the Venezuelan Constitution, which reads as follows:

"The Venezuelan people are the depositary of the original constituent power. In the exercise of that power, it can convene a National Constituent Assembly with the purpose of transforming the state, creating a new legal system and drafting a new Constitution."

The president has the power to do so, although he will not be able to object to the constitution that results from it.

In terms of changes, it is not clear yet what is coming.

Maduro has talked about the Constituent Assembly as an initiative that will resolve political and economic challenges, but it is unclear what the reforms will be.

Critics fear that the Constituent Assembly will try to override the National Assembly, the only government sector not controlled by Maduro's party.

READ MORE: Venezuela has reached the 'zero hour' - What's next?

2. Why did Maduro call this vote?

President Maduro called for the Assembly on May 1 amid a political crisis marked by a month of almost daily demonstrations.

At an open air rally before thousands of supporters, Maduro signed a document formally establishing the terms for electing members of the constituent assembly.

The president announced his decision saying it was the "only road to restore peace".

In a speech, he said that he aimed to "let the sovereign people impose peace, harmony and true national dialogue".

Maduro assured that the new constitution will be an "improvement" of the revolutionary plan of Chavez.

3. Who can elect and be elected?

There will be 545 elected delegates to the assembly, from more than 6,000 candidates.

From those, 364 will be chosen by local polls. The other 181 members will be elected by members of seven social sectors, including indigenous groups, poor farmers, students, and pensioners.

Those sectors have always shown strong support to Chavez and Maduro.

The opposition is boycotting the election, so from the 6,000 people that are running for seats, they do not have any representation.

Critics say the process has been distorted, because the president chose who could be listed in the constituent. That decision was not open to the public.

READ MORE: Venezuela's worst economic crisis - What went wrong?

4. What do supporters say?

They say they are willing to participate and hope the vote brings stability.

"We will participate in a process that the majority, accept, receive and are willing to participate in. On July 30, we will see the true support to the Bolivarian Revolution, and President Nicolas Maduro," General Gabriel Oviedo, a candidate to the Constituent, told Al Jazeera.

"The Constituent will continue, and with it the mechanisms will come so that each one responds to its illegal acts, it's time to have justice, and to defend the motherland," he added.

Cilia Flores, Maduro's wife and a candidate for the assembly, believes the move will bring peace and stability. "The National Assembly went crazy, and they thought they could overthrow President Maduro ... the people want peace, and this stability will be given to us by the Constituent," she told local media.

"This has not been an imposed process. I support it. It is an instrument of the state, something imposed is not submitted to a vote," Rossana Melendez, an environmental manager, told Al Jazeera.

5. What does the opposition say?

The opposition rejected the move from the start.

A Supreme Tribunal magistrate, Luisa Ortega Diaz, said the assembly was "not the solution to the crisis" and called on Maduro to "think carefully" to avoid more bloodshed.

Jose Haro, a constitutional lawyer, said: "What happens if this Constituent Assembly is imposed, without having consulted the people, is that it [risks dismantling] the state that we have, the constitutional base that we have.

"It gives way to a situation of high voltage political conflict, which can lead to even greater confrontation. The day that Maduro summoned the Constituent Assembly, the number of killed in demonstrations was no more than 29. After he made the announcement, the number has tripled ... If this goes ahead, Venezuela will enter a dark period."

The opposition is demanding elections to remove Maduro from power. They blame him for an economic crisis that has caused shortages of food, medicine and basic supplies.

6. How long could the process take?

Last time this happened, the process began on February 2, 1999, and finished with the publication of the Constitution in March 2000.

The Constituent Assembly could last more than a year because referendums and elections must be convened to determine the constituents, who are likely to discuss for months the issues concerning the new constitution.

This would allow the president to stay in power during the process, and could lead to a delay of the 2018 presidential election.

7. What was achieved the first time this was done?

The Constituent Assembly of 1999 made significant changes, including increasing the presidential term from five to six years; unifying the two chambers of the National Congress into a National Assembly, and changing the name of the country to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

8. What happens next?

Pressure from the opposition is expected to grow. Maduro has warned that his government is "ready for any scenario".

According to its decree, the National Constituent Assembly will be installed within 72 hours after the proclamation of the constituents.

President Maduro promised that before the new constitution is implemented, it would also be the subject of a referendum.

During the 1999 Constituent Assembly, Congress was shut down. This time, the Congress has said it will not cooperate. </s> After months of protests, millions are called upon to choose representatives of an assembly to redraft the constitution.

After months of protests and clashes, with more than 100 people killed, Venezuelans are being called on to choose the members of a new National Constituent Assembly that will be tasked with drafting a new constitution.

In 1999, the then newly elected President Hugo Chavez and voters supported the initiative.

The difference now is that Sunday's election was ordered by decree, with no referendum indicating that a majority wants a change.

Venezuelans will answer one question: Who should represent you in the assembly?

Anticipating possible violence, the government has banned protests.

But the opposition has called people to the streets.

"Extend the barricades until tomorrow and everybody go to the streets on Sunday to demand the transformation of Venezuela," Freddy Guevara, an opposition congressman, said on Twitter. "This is a tough, conflictive time that we did not look for, but that will only hasten the fall of this government."

So what does this process entail? Below, we answer key questions:

An elected temporary parliament that has the mandate to draft or reform the Constitution.

On July 30, Venezuelans will choose the members of this parliament.

President Maduro invoked article 347 of the Venezuelan Constitution, which reads as follows:

"The Venezuelan people are the depositary of the original constituent power. In the exercise of that power, it can convene a National Constituent Assembly with the purpose of transforming the state, creating a new legal system and drafting a new Constitution."

The president has the power to do so, although he will not be able to object to the constitution that results from it.

In terms of changes, it is not clear yet what is coming.

Maduro has talked about the Constituent Assembly as an initiative that will resolve political and economic challenges, but it is unclear what the reforms will be.

Critics fear that the Constituent Assembly will try to override the National Assembly, the only government sector not controlled by Maduro's party.

2. Why did Maduro call this vote?

President Maduro called for the Assembly on May 1 amid a political crisis marked by a month of almost daily demonstrations.

At an open air rally before thousands of supporters, Maduro signed a document formally establishing the terms for electing members of the constituent assembly.

The president announced his decision saying it was the "only road to restore peace".

In a speech, he said that he aimed to "let the sovereign people impose peace, harmony and true national dialogue".

Maduro assured that the new constitution will be an "improvement" of the revolutionary plan of Chavez.

3. Who can elect and be elected?

There will be 545 elected delegates to the assembly, from more than 6,000 candidates.

From those, 364 will be chosen by local polls. The other 181 members will be elected by members of seven social sectors, including indigenous groups, poor farmers, students, and pensioners.

Those sectors have always shown strong support to Chavez and Maduro.

The opposition is boycotting the election, so from the 6,000 people that are running for seats, they do not have any representation.

Critics say the process has been distorted, because the president chose who could be listed in the constituent. That decision was not open to the public.

4. What do supporters say?

This has not been an imposed process. I support it. It is an instrument of the state, something imposed is not submitted to a vote

They say they are willing to participate and hope the vote brings stability.

"We will participate in a process that the majority, accept, receive and are willing to participate in. On July 30, we will see the true support to the Bolivarian Revolution, and President Nicolas Maduro," General Gabriel Oviedo, a candidate to the Constituent, said.

"The Constituent will continue, and with it the mechanisms will come so that each one responds to its illegal acts, it's time to have justice, and to defend the motherland," he added.

Cilia Flores, Maduro's wife and a candidate for the assembly, believes the move will bring peace and stability. "The National Assembly went crazy, and they thought they could overthrow President Maduro ... the people want peace, and this stability will be given to us by the Constituent," she told local media.

"This has not been an imposed process. I support it. It is an instrument of the state, something imposed is not submitted to a vote," Rossana Melendez, an environmental manager, said.

5. What does the opposition say?

What happens if this Constituent Assembly is imposed, without having consulted the people, is that it [risks dismantling] the state that we have, the constitutional base that we have

The opposition rejected the move from the start.

A Supreme Tribunal magistrate, Luisa Ortega Diaz, said the assembly was "not the solution to the crisis" and called on Maduro to "think carefully" to avoid more bloodshed.

Jose Haro, a constitutional lawyer, said: "What happens if this Constituent Assembly is imposed, without having consulted the people, is that it [risks dismantling] the state that we have, the constitutional base that we have.

"It gives way to a situation of high voltage political conflict, which can lead to even greater confrontation. The day that Maduro summoned the Constituent Assembly, the number of killed in demonstrations was no more than 29. After he made the announcement, the number has tripled ... If this goes ahead, Venezuela will enter a dark period."

The opposition is demanding elections to remove Maduro from power. They blame him for an economic crisis that has caused shortages of food, medicine and basic supplies.

6. How long could the process take?

Last time this happened, the process began on February 2, 1999, and finished with the publication of the Constitution in March 2000.

The Constituent Assembly could last more than a year because referendums and elections must be convened to determine the constituents, who are likely to discuss for months the issues concerning the new constitution.

This would allow the president to stay in power during the process, and could lead to a delay of the 2018 presidential election.

7. What was achieved the first time this was done?

The Constituent Assembly of 1999 made significant changes, including increasing the presidential term from five to six years; unifying the two chambers of the National Congress into a National Assembly, and changing the name of the country to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

8. What happens next?

Pressure from the opposition is expected to grow. Maduro has warned that his government is "ready for any scenario".

According to its decree, the National Constituent Assembly will be installed within 72 hours after the proclamation of the constituents.

President Maduro promised that before the new constitution is implemented, it would also be the subject of a referendum.

During the 1999 Constituent Assembly, Congress was shut down. This time, the Congress has said it will not cooperate. </s> LONDON (Reuters) - Turnout figures in Venezuela’s Constitutional Assembly election were manipulated up by least 1 million votes, Smartmatic, a company which has worked with Venezuela since 2004 on its voting system, said on Wednesday.

“We know, without any doubt, that the turnout of the recent election for a National Constituent Assembly was manipulated,” Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said at a news briefing in London.

Mugica said Smartmatic, which has provided electronic voting technology for elections around the world, was able to detect the overstated officially announced turnout because of Venezuela’s automated election system.

“We estimate the difference between the actual participation and the one announced by authorities is at least 1 million votes,” he said.

Mugica declined to directly answer whether the manipulated turnout numbers changed the result of the election, in which authorities said 8.1 million people voted.

The election of the legislative super-body has been decried by critics as illegitimate and designed to give the unpopular government of President Nicolas Maduro powers to rewrite the constitution and sideline the opposition-led congress.

Mugica said the authorities in Venezuela would likely not be sympathetic to his comments and that he had not yet passed the evidence to the Venezuela’s electoral council.

The National Elections Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to internal electoral council data previously reviewed by Reuters, only 3.7 million people had voted by 5:30 p.m. in Venezuela’s election on Sunday.

Venezuelan authorities did not respond to a request for comment on that reviewed data. </s> LONDON, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Turnout figures in Venezuela's Constitutional Assembly election were manipulated by least one million votes, Smartmatic, a company which has worked with Venezuela since 2004 on its voting system, said on Wednesday.

"We know, without any doubt, that the turn out of the recent election for a National Constituent Assembly was manipulated," Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said at a news briefing in London.

"We estimate the difference between the actual participation and the one announced by authorities is at least one million votes." (Reporting by Cassandra Garrison, editing by Guy Faulconbridge; editing by John Stonestreet) </s> Venezuelan Poll 'Tampered With,' Says Voting System Company

Enlarge this image toggle caption Ariana Cubillos/AP Ariana Cubillos/AP

The results of Venezuela's controversial vote to create a new legislature and give President Nicolas Maduro broad authoritarian powers were "tampered with," to change turnout figures, according to the CEO of the firm that provided the election system.

The news may support opposition charges that the results were inflated to add credibility to the vote, which established a National Constituent Assembly beholden to Maduro.

Speaking at a news briefing in London, Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica said the results of Sunday's poll were off by at least one million.

"We know, without any doubt, that the turnout of the recent election for a National Constituent Assembly was manipulated," Mugica told reporters.

"We estimate the difference between the actual participation and the one announced by authorities is at least one million votes," he said.

"It is therefore with the deepest regret that we have to report that the turnout figures on Sunday, 30 July, for the Constituent Assembly in Venezuela were tampered with," he said.

Mugica said the company has recorded the correct figure, but would wait to release that information until a full audit is carried out.

Smartmatic, which produces electronic voting machines, started in Venezuela during the tenure of the late President Hugo Chavez. Since then, it has gone global and now serves elections in Venezuela and several other countries.

In a further statement on the company's website, Smartmatic says that the system used in Venezuela is "tamper evident."

"[It] self-reports any attempt to interfere with it. This means that the system is designed to protect the votes from any manipulation and to immediately identify and alert of such an attempt," the company says.

Venezuela's opposition and the White House have condemned the poll as a "sham election." NPR's Philip Reeves, reporting from Caracas Monday, saying that: "The election council - the electoral council in Venezuela claims that 42 percent voted. That's just over 8 million people. This is being met with derision, particularly by the opposition that says the number was closer to 2 to 3 million people."
Voters in Venezuela participate in an election for members of a new Constitutional Assembly, devised by President Nicolás Maduro to amend the constitution following a legislative takeover in March. Many Venezuelans question the election's legitimacy, resulting in boycotts and ongoing protests.