Weekly Report - 02 September 2021 (WR-21-35)

Venezuela’s main opposition parties, grouped under the Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (MUD) coalition, announced on 31 August that they will participate in the November regional and municipal elections rather than repeat the boycott of the December 2020 legislative election. The announcement reflects diminished faith in opposition leader Juan Guaidó’s maximum pressure strategy to force President Nicolás Maduro out of office through a mix of international sanctions and domestic public pressure. However, it also signals the opposition’s hope that it can secure some degree of democratic reform from the government in the ongoing dialogue process in Mexico [WR-21-33].