Tensions bubbled over into violence that resulted in at least five deaths in Venezuela on Sunday. This happened amid clashes with security forces as many voters boycotted election polls that President Nicolás Maduro hailed as a "vote for peace."

Ricardo Campos, 30, died in the northeast state of Sucre in the morning, the prosecutor-general's office said on Twitter. ‍Deputy Henry Ramos Allup, an opposition legislator, identified Campos as a youth opposition leader for the conservative Democratic Action (AD) party, and said he died of a gunshot near his home.

Later in the day came the announcement of four more deaths. Two adults, Luis Zambrano, 43, in the central state of Lara, and Ronald Ramirez, an army lieutenant, in the western state of Tachira. 

Firefighters watch as anti-government activists attack and set on fire a National Traffic Police station during a protest against the election of a Constituent Assembly proposed by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in Caracas, July 30, 2017. /VCG Photo

Venezulan elections for a promised new future

President Nicolas Maduro, widely disliked for overseeing an unraveling of the economy, has promised that the assembly will restore peace after four months of opposition protests during which more than 120 people have been killed.

Opposition parties are boycotting what they call a rigged election while their sympathizers plan demonstrations across the country during the day, raising the prospect of violent clashes with security forces.

President Nicolas Maduro is among one of the first figures who cast his vote at a polling station in the west of the capital city of Caracas. /AFP Photo

Maduro says opposition protests have been driven by vandalism and arbitrary violence that will not be brought to an end without the constitutional assembly.

Pressure from international societies

US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Sunday that the United States will not accept an illegitimate government in Caracas.

Mexico, Colombia and Panama have also said they would not recognize the results of the election.

A Venezuelan national holds up a placard during a protest on July 30, 2017 against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and the election of a Constituent Assembly. /AFP Photo

The President of Venezuela's Constituent Commission, Elias Jaua, said that the ANC did not need the recognition of "any government." 

(With input from Xinhua and Reuters)

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