Venezuelans will vote on 14 April to choose a new president, the elections commission announced on Saturday. The constitution mandates that the election be held within 30 days of Chávez's death on 5 March, but the date picked falls outside that period. Critics of the socialist government have already complained that officials have violated the constitution by swearing in vice-president Nicolás Maduro as acting leader on Friday night.

Some people have speculated that Venezuela will not be ready to organize the vote in time, but elections council chief Tibisay Lucena said the country's electronic voting system was fully prepared.