Everything you need to know about Venezuela’s upcoming elections

President Nicolás Maduro took office after the death of his predecessor Hugo Chavez in 2013.

A win for the president will mean another 6 years in government. In the 2013 election, Maduro won by a narrow margin of 1.6 percentage points, according to the National Electoral Council. His pro-business challenger, Henrique Capriles, said the result might have been manipulated and insisted on a vote-by-vote audit, a request that was overlooked and Maduro declared winner.

Since then, Maduro's rule has been marked by economic crisis, hyperinflation, and widespread shortages of basic goods. His administration has faced significant opposition both domestically and internationally, with accusations of authoritarianism and human rights abuses. Close to 8 million Venezuelans are said to have fled the country since 2013.

While concerns about the fairness of the upcoming elections linger, the world is looking forward to the landmark election that could change the dynamics in Venezuela.

Here are a few facts about the election to note

Who are the candidates?

10 candidates are vying for the presidency in the upcoming elections.

The main candidates in the election are Nicolas Maduro 61, who is the current president and represents the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, and Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, 74, who is a candidate for Plataforma Unitaria Democratica (PUD) and represents the opposition. He is an academic and former diplomat and became a replacement for María Corina Machado who was the party’s previous candidate chosen to unseat Maduro. Machado was banned by the Supreme Court from running for public office over corruption allegations. This was after she won an opposition primary held in October 2023 with more than 90% of the votes.

But since then, she has had a ban which prevents her from running for public office confirmed by the Supreme Court, which is stacked with government loyalists. Other candidates include Luis Eduardo Martinez who represents Democratic Action, Daniel Ceballos of the AREPA party, Antonio Ecarri of LAPIZ, Benjamin Rausseo of the CONDE Party, and Jose Brito Rodriguez who represents Venezuela First. The others are Claudio Fermin of Solutions for Venezuela, Javier Bertucci from Hope for Change, and Enrique Marquez of CENNTRADOS.

Major issues

Public polls conducted prior to Sunday’s elections show that Venezuelans want a change from the seemingly Chavismo-led government under Maduro. Maduro has maintained power amid allegations of electoral fraud and manipulation by both local and international bodies. His government has been accused of controlling the various arms of governments including legislature, judiciary, security bodies, and the media.

Since 2005, 2018, and 2020, opposition parties boycotted elections in protest of what they claimed were unfair processes.

The 2018 presidential election saw Maduro winning with 67.8% of the vote amid a significant opposition boycott, an election that was described as illegitimate by an alliance of 14 Latin American nations, Canada, and the United States. The Organisation of American States described the poll as a “farce.”

With international backing from allies like the U.S. under the Trump-led administration, opposition parties became unified under Maria Machado to form a second force against the ruling party.

In 2023, the government and opposition signed an agreement which outlines conditions for the acceptance of the 2024 elections by both parties. The US eased its sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector after the signing of this deal. These restrictions had been imposed after what Washington said were "illegitimate" elections in 2018.

Recent polls indicate that the opposition candidate Edmundo González is leading incumbent President Nicolas Maduro with chances of votes. A survey conducted by ORC Consultores in Venezuela for instance indicates that 59.6 percent of voters intend to vote for Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as against 12.5 percent for Maduro.

The survey further indicated that 55.2 percent of respondents identified with the opposition. Out of this number, 31.6 percent identify with the Gonzalez’ PUD, 14.7 percent don’t align with any faction but seek to vote against Chavismo and 8.9 percent from the opposition don’t support PUD.

11.4 percent supported the ruling government with 10.4 supporting Maduro and the remaining 0.2 percent not supporting any party but willing to vote for a Chavista. The other 0.9 percent identify as left-wing Chavista but do not support Maduro.

Many government critics however fear that Maduro’s government is likely not to publicize or accept the results if he fails to win the elections.

Many others predict that he may manipulate the system to retain power.

Why does Maduro appear 13 times on the ballot?

Maduro’s name appears 13 times on the ballot for Sunday’s elections. Although the phenomenon of seeing many candidates on the touch screens used for voting, 13 times for a single individual appears to be somewhat new.

The reason is simple, each appearance is a representation of each political group he represents in the election. He takes up the first four rows and leaves the rest of the slots for other candidates to share. His closest contender Eduardo González appears three times on the ballot while Luis Eduardo Martinez who represents Democratic Action and is considered a government ally, shows up six times.

How does voting work in Venezuela?

Voting in Venezuela is digital and can be audited at all stages. According to the National Electoral Commission, the voting process is fully automated.

Venezuela became the first country globally to hold a national election using machines that print voting receipts in 2004. The multinational Smartmatic was selected as the electoral technology provider in charge of all elections in that same year.

The Smartmatic Auditable Election Systems (SAES) voting machines were provided for voting side by side with a conventional electronic ballot where voters can click on the name, face, or party they prefer to vote for.

The Comprehensive Authentication System (SAI) allows the voter to activate the machine with their fingerprints after which the voter can cast their vote directly by pressing the VOTE option on the machine’s screen or the electronic ballot.

The individual’s vote is stored randomly in the machine’s memory and is recorded subsequently in the printed tally sheets.

Voters also get physical receipts that confirm their voting choice. These receipts are supposed to be put in a provided ballot box to be used for comparison with the data on the tally sheets.

According to the National Electoral Council (CNE), the system that tallies votes in Venezuela uses powerful servers to gather results from voting machines nationwide. Only machines authenticated and authorized by the CNE can send data.

The process is protected by an encrypted alphanumeric key, shared among the CNE, political parties, and Smartmatic, preventing unauthorized access. This key is combined with each machine's unique network card number, creating a unique encryption for each machine. This final key is also secured with another layer of encryption.

When does voting start and end?

Typically voting in Venezuela starts at 6. am and ends when the last person casts their votes. Results are expected anytime soon after the polls end.

International concerns

In the lead-up to the vote, the US State Department has criticised Venezuela for the “unjust” detention of democratic opposition figures, civil society members, and journalists. In a statement on Wednesday, July 17, they called for their immediate release.

“If they do not want Venezuela to fall into a bloodbath, into a fratricidal civil war, the ruling party must win the presidential elections on July 28,” Maduro was quoted as saying at a campaign event in the Venezuelan capital the previous day.

Maduro’s concerning comments ahead of polls

Maduro has raised concerns about possible manipulation of the elections following recent comments he made. During a campaign rally on July 19, he confidently told supporters that he had a “fair lead.”

"We are winning, and we are winning with a fair lead," Maduro proclaimed to his supporters in Petare, a neighbourhood in eastern Caracas. The rally saw Maduro dancing and singing with the crowd, as he assured them that "no one will sabotage" the vote.

On 4 February this year to mark the anniversary of a failed coup led by his mentor, Hugo Chávez, Maduro also assured the crowd that he was winning the July elections “by hook or crook”.

The fourth of February is the day when followers of Chavismo, the political movement created by the late Chávez, celebrate its foundation in 1992.