Regina Garcia Cano and Jorge Rueda | Associated Press

The U.S. government has recognized Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González as the “president-elect” of the South American country, months after President Nicolás Maduro claimed to have won the July election.

A Venezuelan judge has issued an arrest warrant for the opposition’s former presidential candidate Edmundo González as part of a criminal investigation into the results of the disputed July election.

The attorney general says Tareck El Aissami will make his first court appearance Tuesday on charges that include treason, money laundering and criminal association.

Venezuela has announced that its highly anticipated presidential election will take place July 28, but the country’s leading opposition candidate remains barred from the ballot.