Venezuela heads to the polls amid divided opposition and united Chavismo

Venezuelans head to elections on May 25. A united Chavismo will face a divided opposition, amidst accusations of an alleged violent plan to boycott the elections.

Chavez-Maduro mural in Venezuela, May 2025 -- Guaiquerí, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

By Pablo Meriguet, People's Dispatch

On May 25, Venezuelans will once again go to the polls to elect:

• 285 deputies to the National Assembly

• 24 governors

• 260 regional legislators

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According to data from the National Electoral Council, close to 6,000 people are running for different popularly elected positions from 36 different political parties.

The government trusts in its supporters

The ruling party, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), has closed ranks around the Great Patriotic Pole, a coalition of 14 political parties, to offer single candidacies and thus avoid dividing the vote that supports or sympathizes with the political project that has been developing since the beginning of the 21st century, the Bolivarian Revolution.

The President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, said that the great challenge for the Chavista candidates will be: “Connecting with grassroots popular power, reaching out to the people, in order to plan this great new era.”

For his part, Jorge Rodríguez, current President of the Legislative (and historic leader of the PSUV), said:“We are giving our all to win 24 governorships and consolidate a clear parliamentary majority. What we are sure of is that we will win again.”

A divided Venezuelan right-wing

On the other hand, the opposition is divided. The right wing, grouped around María Corina Machado, called on supporters to not go to the electoral precincts in a plan to boycott the elections. They also did not present candidates. In this way, the opposition hopes to delegitimize Chavismo’s probable victory.

However, a sector of the right has decided to participate in the regional and legislative elections, despite condemnation from Machado and former presidential candidate Edmundo González. Parties such as A New Time (UNT) and the Democratic Alliance coalition, which includes more than 20 opposition parties and movements, have called their voters to participate in the May 25 elections.

Probably the most recognized politician backing the approach of participation in the upcoming elections is Henrique Capriles, former presidential candidate and former governor of the State of Miranda, one of the main political cadres of the opposition.

In an interview with El País, Capriles stated: “The opposition has already used abstention as a way of conducting politics, and in the end, it’s nothing. What can you build from abstention? All you’re doing is making things easier for the Government… For me, politics is action and abstention is inaction.”

Regarding this change in strategy from a sector of the opposition, Chilean journalist Pablo Jofre Leal says: “Capriles is part of the so-called Network Decide (Citizen Defense of Democracy) presented on April 2, 2025, which according to his own words ‘marks a strategic change of a sector of the Venezuelan opposition by prioritizing electoral participation as a tool of democratic resistance, while rejecting international economic sanctions and secondary tariffs linked to Venezuela’. Accompanying Capriles in this Network are politicians considered ‘moderates’ (ambiguous term in political matters) such as Jesús ‘Chuo’ Torrealba, Henri Falcón, Tomás Guanipa, Andrés Caleca, and Vladimir Villegas, among others.” 

He added that former presidential candidate Manuel Rosales, current governor of Zulia, and Antonio Ecarri should also be included among this democratic tendency of the opposition.

Maduro denounced a violent plan to sabotage the elections

On May 19, the Executive denounced that it had uncovered an alleged plan to attack the population with bombs and other terrorist tactics during the May 25 elections. In this sense, the government announced the arrest of 38 persons (21 Venezuelans and 17 foreigners) who, according to Venezuelan intelligence, were planning to violently sabotage the elections. They also confirmed the seizure of cell phones that contain valuable information on the origin and financing of these plans.

Maduro denounced that the Albanian mafia and groups of Colombian drug traffickers were behind the plan to carry out bombings in Venezuelan territory. “The Albanian mafia that governs Ecuador sent part of its trained mercenaries to plant bombs in Venezuela. They have been captured,” stated Maduro in a televised speech.

Suspension of flights between Colombia and Venezuela

In connection with the alleged terrorist plans, Vice President Diosdado Cabello announced that the cancellation of all flights from Colombia has been ordered “until further notice”. In this way, the government intends to stop the entry of people who are allegedly linked to potential attacks.

Cabello said “[that the objective of the alleged mercenaries] was to generate attacks with explosives against embassies, hospitals, public service centers, and government personalities.” He further stated that these acts had the support of certain ultra-right sectors: “They want to present that in Venezuela there are no conditions for elections, but the National Electoral Council has complied with the schedule. The Republic Plan is already activated to guarantee security.”

On his part, the Venezuelan President said that he foresees a peaceful election day despite the alleged terrorist plans: “Vote yes, no violence. No one can take away the right of the people to elect, to vote, to participate, to have their authorities,” stated Maduro.

Historic elections in the Essequibo

The election will also be historic because for the first time a governor, eight deputies to the Legislative, and seven members of the regional legislative council will be elected to represent the Essequibo, a rich, 160,000 square kilometers area disputed between the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.

The elections have caused controversy in Guyana, where President Irfaan Ali affirmed that he will do everything possible to uphold the integrity of a territory they claim as their own. However, for several decades, Venezuela has also claimed the territory as an indivisible part of its nation. It is now considered Venezuela’s 24th state. However, the election will not be held in the disputed territory, so it would be extremely unlikely for there to be incidents between both nations on that day, although the Guyanese government stated that it will accuse those who participate or support the Venezuelan election of treason.

In this way, a scenario emerges which appears routine on the surface, but given Venezuela’s central role in global economic and political disputes, becomes a geopolitical arena constantly poised for internal and external tensions. The resolution of these tensions will likely depend on the political capacity of its members to overcome differences and thus gain ground against their adversaries.

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