Maria Corina Machado, an industrial engineer, won the Venezuelan opposition’s presidential primary after tallying a sizable majority of the votes with little over a quarter of the ballots cast.

Amid American promises to rip back sanctions relief if the government does not lift the restrictions banning some opposition individuals from seeking office, the opposition staged the election to select a unity candidate to take on President Nicolas Maduro in his likely reelection attempt next year.

Around midnight on Sunday (0400 GMT on Monday), the primary’s organizing committee said that Machado, who has promised to privatize state oil giant PDVSA if elected president, was tallying 93% of the vote.

The server obstruction that caused a delay in the count was scheduled to end on Monday. When the next results update will be provided is not known.

Despite the transfer of polling locations, lengthy lines, and the scarcity of fuel and public transportation in certain areas, participation in the vote, which was organized without official assistance, was more than twice what had been anticipated in several states.

Carlos Prosperi, a former legislator, was Machado’s closest opponent with 4.75% of the vote. In surveys, Machado, 56, had a lead over her opponents of almost 40 points.

She is still prohibited from holding public office due to her support for the sanctions on Maduro’s regime; it is unclear if she can compete in the general election.

Last week, the opposition and the government reached an electoral agreement that permits each faction to choose its candidate by internal rules while maintaining the disqualifications.

The United States significantly loosened its sanctions on Venezuelan oil, gas, and bonds in response to the agreement. Maduro, however, has been given until the end of November to start lifting the restrictions on the opposition and freeing political prisoners and “wrongfully detained” Americans. The Maduro regime said last week that anyone with disqualifications cannot compete in the 2024 election, even though five people were freed.

If Machado wins the primary but cannot run in 2024, the opposition, which claims that the disqualifications are illegal, has been coy about what it will do.

While others have stated that a replacement will be required, Machado has claimed that she can compel the election officials into letting her register.