Maduro's decree includes wider executive powers to control the budget, companies and the currency amid a severe economic crisis in the OPEC nation. ^

Candidates must register by late March, giving Machado and other opposition factions less than three weeks to decide next steps.

Not surprisingly, President Maduro did not take kindly to his rival's move, which he condemned as a ploy by the US to oust him.

The future of Venezuela and whether it can rebuild matters for the rest of the world - mass emigration has fuelled a migration crisis on the US border, its vast oil reserves remain relatively unusable, and it remains an ally for Russia, China, Cuba and Iran in the West.

As the city hums back into life this morning, the government faces pressure from both the international community and the opposition here to explain their numbers – after the opposition were so far ahead in the polls beforehand.

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The National Election Council ordered an audit of the ballots in the 46 percent of precincts that had not already been automatically audited under Venezuelan election law, but Capriles refused to participate when the Council chose not to examine the signatures and fingerprints of voters on the registers as part of the audit. He vowed to challenge the results in court. In the meantime, Maduro was sworn in as president on April 19.

On 11 January 2018, the Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela in exile decreed the nullity of the 2013 presidential elections after lawyer Enrique Aristeguita Gramcko presented evidence about the presumed non-existence of ineligibility conditions of Maduro to be elected and to hold the office of the presidency. Aristeguieta argued in the appeal that, under Article 96, Section B, of the Political Constitution of Colombia, Nicolás Maduro Moros, even in the unproven case of having been born in Venezuela, is "Colombian by birth" because he is the son of a Colombian mother and by having resided in that territory during his youth.

By February 12, security forces and armed pro-government civilian groups had begun responding violently to the escalating protests, which by the last week of the month had resulted in about a dozen deaths.

On 14 December 2020, the Office of the Prosecutor released a report on the office's year activities, stating that it believed there was a "reasonable basis" to believe that "since at least April 2017, civilian authorities, members of the armed forces and pro-government individuals have committed the crimes against humanity.

This led to accusations of deliberate delays, perhaps in the hope some people would give up and go home.

A UN diplomat said that Maduro was not authorized to speak publicly while his trip was delayed because he had shown up late without a ticket, prompting the screening.[68] Maduro said the incident prevented him from traveling home on the same day.[citation needed]

In the press, he's been dubbed both a mad genius and Twitter's biggest troll - known as much for his lofty ambitions as his petty fights, not to mention the more serious lawsuits he and his companies have faced from regulators, investors and vlogdolisboa others over issues such as racial discrimination and the trustworthiness of his claims.

More recent business ventures include his takeover of social media platform Twitter in October 2022.