At stake in this election:

• The office of President of Venezuela

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias
• Head of Government: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias
• Assembly: Venezuela has a unicameral National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional) with 21 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by popular vote to serve a 6-year term.
• In the National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional), .***

*** Venezuela has a unicameral National Assembly currently consisting of 21 members. The 21-member congress is an interim legislature put in place after the constitution passed by referendum in December 1999 dissolved the previous bicameral parliament.
Members of the National Assembly will be elected by a mixed system with 60% being elected by simple majority vote in single member constituencies and 40% elected by closed party-lists with proportional representation in multi-member constituencies. All members will be elected to five-year terms.

Main Candidates in the Presidential race:

• Hugo CHAVEZ
  • Party: Movement for the Fifth Republic (MVR)
• Francisco ARIAS Cardenas
  • Party: Independent Candidate
• Claudio FERMIN
  • Party: National Encounter (EN)

Last Presidential election:

• Presidential elections last held: December 6, 1998. President Hugo Chavez received 56.20% of the vote, defeating Henrique Salas, his closest competitor with 39.97% of the vote.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 24,169,807 (July 2000 est)
• Registered Voters: 11,681,645 ( 2000 )

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 12,190,859 (2000)

·         Is Venezuela a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)

·         Has Venezuela ratified CEDAW: Yes (2 May 1983)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 16 (following the 2000 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 71 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Very Low (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Venezuela a signatory to CRPD: No

·         Has Venezuela ratified CRPD: Yes, accession (24 September 2013)

·         Population with a disability: 3,625,471 (est.)