Nicolas Maduro was sworn in as Venezuela's president-elect on Thursday, months before he's due to formally take the oath of office next year for a second term. Falcon rejected the vote and called for a new election, accusing Maduro of buying votes of the poor by offering prizes. In the days following the election, Maduro has expelled two top U.S. diplomats from Venezuela, drawing an equal response from Washington. Venezuela's opposition coalition blasted the swearing-in ceremony coming on the heels of what it considers a fraudulent election.? "Two illegitimacies don't cancel out each other," the coalition said in a statement, demanding Maduro's government respect Venezuela's constitution and its people.

Source: ABC News May 24, 2018 18:30 UTC