WEBINAR
Elections in Venezuela
On 28 July, polls open for Venezuela's 2024 presidential election. In a single round of voting, the country will elect its next president and vice-president for a six-year term.
More than 21 million Venezuelans are registered to vote in a highly anticipated election in which President Nicolás Maduro seeks a third term in office. However, the exodus of over 7.7 million people who have abandoned Venezuela — including about 4.5 million voters — is expected to reduce the number to 17 million.
For the past 25 years Venezuela’s government has been controlled by Chavismo, the socialist movement that began with Hugo Chávez’s election in 1998. Upon Chávez' death in 2013, Maduro was elected president, with a narrow margin of victory. He has since led Venezuela with his United Socialist Party of Venezuela (Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela, PSUV).
Maduro's principal opponent at this election is Edmundo González Urrutia, candidate for the Unitary Platform (Plataforma Unitaria, PU).
González became the PU's presidential candidate in April 2024, following the barring of long-time leading opposition voice María Corina Machado and her originally selected replacement, Corina Yoris, from standing. In June 2023, Machado was banned from running for office for 15 years, accused of links to alleged crimes by opposition figure Juan Guaidó during Venezuela's presidential crisis (2019-2023) and of supporting international sanctions against Venezuela.
At the time of writing, many opinion polls show a strong lead for González in voter intention. However, observers have expressed concerns that this election will not be held in a free and fair manner.
In this webinar, Canning House discussed key dynamics ahead of the vote, and what its results could mean for Venezuela.
PANEL
Carlos Malamud
Senior Analyst - Real Instituto Elcano
Marcela Rios
Director for Latin America & the Caribbean - IDEA International
Ramiro Blazquez
Head of Research and Strategy - BancTrust & Co.
Mariano de Alba
Political Risk Consultant
MODERATED BY
Jeremy Browne
CEO, Canning House