(Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado called on the nation’s military ranks to guarantee a “legitimate and orderly transition” after presidential elections this month.

“You will be front-row witnesses to a nation’s cry for freedom, through peaceful, democratic and constitutional means,” Machado said in a video posted on X on Friday, during a national holiday celebrating the signing of Venezuela’s independence act.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is seeking a third term in the July 28 vote, but most polls show him as much as 20 points behind Edmundo González, who is standing in for Machado after she was banned from participating. 

Despite his unpopularity, Maduro has a strong base of support among government officials, the military and people who depend on government handouts.

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