Organizational tactics by Venezuela’s electoral authorities are allegedly aimed at confusing voters and hindering a fair presidential election set for July 28, according to opposition leaders and experts.
President Nicolas Maduro, who is running for a third term and trails opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez, a former ambassador, by 20 points in polls, claims Venezuela’s electoral system is the most transparent globally. However, the U.S. and other nations have deemed his 2018 re-election fraudulent. Maduro has also accused the opposition of preparing to declare the election fraudulent and instigate “chaos and violence.”
Opposition and voter rights groups argue that decisions made by the National Electoral Council (CNE) could obstruct the 21.3 million registered voters’ free access to voting. Andres Caleca, a former CNE official and opposition figure, stated on X, “The intent to manipulate and distort the majority’s desire for change is blatant and must be strongly condemned.”
There are 15,797 polling stations nationwide; around 8,000 will have only one ballot box, an increase from 6,800 in the 2018 election. Such setups, which gather more votes per box, are harder to monitor for fraud and can slow down voting, leading to longer lines, as noted by regional NGO Electoral Transparency and the opposition.
Some voters have reported on social media that their polling locations have been moved to another state, far from their residences. John Magdaleno, head of the Venezuela-based consulting firm Polity, noted, “Electoral engineering is intentionally designed to consolidate voters in single-box locations, a common strategy in autocracies to introduce uncertainty into electoral competition.”
The Ministry of Information and the CNE have not commented on these allegations. Meanwhile, Maduro has consistently rejected claims of authoritarianism.
The ballot design, which positions candidate photos above their party logos and gives Maduro prominent placement for 13 parties, has also been criticized. In contrast, Gonzalez and other candidates are less prominently displayed. Additionally, a new CNE rule restricts election witnesses to only operate at their voting locations, further complicating the observation process.
In May, Venezuela rescinded an invitation for the European Union to send election observers, attributing the decision to ongoing sanctions it describes as “coercive.” The EU expressed regret over the decision.
Observers from the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), a UN panel, and the Carter Center are still scheduled to monitor the election.
The vast Venezuelan diaspora, which includes 4 million eligible voters, faces significant voting challenges. Only 69,200 are registered to vote, largely due to the lack of diplomatic relations with countries like the U.S. and Canada, where many reside.
In Colombia and Peru, home to millions of Venezuelan migrants, the opposition reports that many were required to provide unnecessary documents for registration or faced closed consulates.
The nomination of Gonzalez was last-minute, occurring after primary winner Maria Corina Machado was barred from public office, and her initial successor failed to register.
