File picture of Nicolas Maduro
Venezuela's electoral authorities on Monday confirmed acting President Nicolas Maduro as the winner of the weekend election to succeed Hugo Chavez, despite opposition demands for a recount.
National Electoral Council president Tibisay Lucena handed the certified results to Maduro after proclaiming him "president-elect of Venezuela" following the tight election against opposition leader Henrique Capriles.
Lucena gave final figures for the vote, and said Maduro won with 50.75 percent of the vote compared to 48.97 percent for Capriles - a difference of around 265,000 votes.
As the council made the announcement, Capriles supporters banged pots and pans outside their windows in an eastern neighborhood of Caracas as a form of protest.