Edmundo González has become a beacon of hope for millions of Venezuelans. They want to call him president. He believes he won that office at the ballot box last year. The government of President Nicolás Maduro says he did not.

Somehow, after each crisis, Maduro emerged stronger, even if the country's problems deepened. By 2022, with his opponents vanquished, he took on a new nickname: Super Bigote, a nod to his thick black mustache. It was also a tribute by supporters to his reputation for defying the odds.

Edmundo Gonzalez, who represented Venezuela's main opposition coalition in the July presidential election, addresses a gathering of supporters outside of the Organization of American States, Monday, Jan.