The Biden administration is beginning to refer to Edmundo González Urrutia as Venezuela’s president-elect, a senior administration official said, its strongest acknowledgment yet that that the opposition candidate won July’s presidential election.

The United States has formally recognized Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez as the country’s president-elect following the disputed July 28 presidential election, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced Tuesday on X.

Democracy demands respect for the will of the voters,’ said Secretary of State Antony Blinken. ‘This gesture honors the desire for change of our people,’ replied the exiled former diplomat