{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://sires.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/bipartisan-group-of-members-of-congress-condemn-venezuela-s-sham", "Bipartisan Group of Members of Congress Condemn Venezuelas Sham Legislative Elections", "2020-12-04", "2020", "2020-12", "Democrat", "Senate", "NJ", "Albio Sires", "S001165", "sires.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "(Washington, DC)  Today, Reps. Albio Sires (D-NJ), Eliot Engel (D-NY), Michael McCaul (R-TX), and Francis Rooney (R-FL) the chairs and ranking members of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee and House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement condemning the upcoming legislative elections in Venezuela:\nThe December 6th legislative elections organized by the Maduro regime are illegitimate and do not meet any standard for a free and fair process. Prominent opposition leaders are legally prohibited from participating, and the leadership of many political parties has been forcibly replaced with regime supporters. Further, the Maduro regime packed the National Electoral Council with loyalists, in violation of the Venezuelan Constitution.\nKnowing the pre-determined outcome, Maduro stated that after these elections he will dissolve the Constituent Assembly, a parallel legislative body he created in 2017 to undermine the legitimately elected National Assembly. And true to its autocratic nature, the regime has threatened to withhold food from Venezuelans who do not vote in the sham elections.\nThe international community must come together in rejecting the Maduro regime's latest power-grab and continued abuse of power. We stand with the Venezuelan people as they seek to restore democracy to their country and continue to support their right to choose their leaders through credible and competitive elections.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://sires.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/bipartisan-group-of-members-of-congress-condemn-venezuela-s-sham"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4091101475059986, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}