CARACAS: Venezuela’s opposition on Friday called for presidential elections, noting that the 90-day legal period for organising a vote on replacing ousted leader Nicolas Maduro had elapsed.

In a statement, the Vente party of opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said that with Maduro absent from the country since his capture by US forces in a Jan 3 raid, “presidential elections must be called within 30 days of this declaration”.

Maduro’s former vice president Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in as interim president on Jan 5, two days after longtime socialist leader Maduro was flown out of Venezuela by US forces to face trial in New York.

He has appeared in court twice since then to answer drug trafficking charges.

The Venezuelan constitution says that “temporary absences of the president of the republic shall be filled by the executive vice president for up to 90 days, extendable by decision of the National Assembly for an additional 90 days”.

“If a temporary absence lasts for more than 90 consecutive days, the National Assembly shall decide by a majority vote of its members whether it should be considered a permanent absence,” says Article 234 of the constitution, which was cited by Vente.

Vente said the “entire country and the democratic international community know and can attest to” Maduro’s complete absence from power.

The move comes a day after protesters calling for wage increases clashed with police in the center of Caracas, in a sign that the fear that gripped Venezuelan society under Maduro had begun to subside.

By Friday, 97 days had passed since Venezuela’s authoritarian leader of 12 years was nabbed by US special forces at a military compound in Caracas, together with his wife Cilia Flores.

Caracas says that around 100 people were killed in the pre-dawn bombing raid that preceded his capture and the firefight between US forces and Maduro’s security detail.

Published in Dawn, April 11th, 2026