National Assembly of Venezuela explained

National Assembly of Venezuela
Native Name:Asamblea Nacional de Venezuela
Native Name Lang:es
Legislature:V National Assembly of Venezuela
Logo Pic:Logo Asamblea Nacional 2021.png
Logo Res:225px
House Type:Unicameral
Preceded By:Congress of Venezuela
Leader1 Type:President
Leader1:Jorge Rodríguez
Party1:PSUV
Election1:5 January 2021
Leader2 Type:Minority Leader
Leader2:José Gregorio Correa
Party2:AD
Seats:277
Structure1:Parlamento de Venezuela 2020.svg
Structure1 Res:250px
Political Groups1:Government (253)

Opposition (21)

Others (3)

  • Indigenous seats (3)
Voting System1:Parallel voting
Last Election1:6 December 2020
Next Election1:2025
Session Room:Palacio Federal Legislativo, 2022.jpg
Meeting Place:Federal Legislative Palace, Caracas

The National Assembly (Spanish; Castilian: Asamblea Nacional) is the legislature for Venezuela that was first elected in 2000. It is a unicameral body made up of a variable number of members, who were elected by a "universal, direct, personal, and secret" vote partly by direct election in state-based voting districts, and partly on a state-based party-list proportional representation system. The number of seats is constant, each state and the Capital district elected three representatives plus the result of dividing the state population by 1.1% of the total population of the country.[1] Three seats are reserved for representatives of Venezuela's indigenous peoples and elected separately by all citizens, not just those with indigenous backgrounds. For the 2010 to 2015 the number of seats was 165.[2] All deputies serve five-year terms. The National Assembly meets in the Federal Legislative Palace in Venezuela's capital, Caracas.

Legislative history

1961 Constitution

See main article: Congress of Venezuela. Under its previous, Venezuela had a bicameral legislature, known as the Congress (Congreso). This Congress was composed of a Senate of Venezuela (Senado) and a Venezuelan Chamber of Deputies (Cámara de Diputados).

The Senate was made up of two senators per state, two for the Federal District, and a number of ex officio senators intended to represent the nation's minorities. In addition, former presidents (those elected democratically or their replacements legally appointed to serve at least half a presidential term) were awarded lifetime senate seats.Senators were required to be Venezuelan-born citizens and over the age of 30.

The members of the Chamber of Deputies were elected by direct universal suffrage, with each state returning at least two. Deputies had to be at least 21 years old.

The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies were each led by a President, and both performed their functions with the help of a Directorial Board. The President of Senate of Venezuela hold additional title of the President of Congress, and was constitutional successor of the President of Venezuela in case of a vacancy.[3] This succession took place in 1993, when Octavio Lepage succeeded Carlos Andrés Pérez.

1999 Constitution

President Hugo Chávez was first elected in December 1998 on a platform calling for a National Constituent Assembly to be convened to draft a new constitution for Venezuela. Chávez's argument was that the existing political system, under the earlier 1961 Constitution, had become isolated from the people. In the Constituent Assembly elections held on 25 July 1999, all but six seats were given to candidates associated with the Chávez movement. The National Constituent Assembly (ANC), consisting of 131 elected individuals, convened in August 1999 to begin rewriting the constitution. The ANC's proposed constitution was approved in a referendum on 15 December 1999 and came into effect the following 20 December.

2017 constitutional crisis

See also: 2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis. On 29 March 2017, the Supreme Court (TSJ) stripped the Assembly of its powers, ruling that all powers would be transferred to the Supreme Court. The previous year the court found the assembly in contempt for swearing in legislators whose elections had been deemed invalid by the court. The 2017 court judgement declared that the "situation of contempt" meant that the assembly could not exercise its powers.[4] The action transferred powers from the Assembly, which had an opposition majority since January 2016,[4] to the Supreme Court, which has a majority of government loyalists. The move was denounced by the opposition with Assembly President Julio Borges describing the action as a coup d'état by President Nicolás Maduro.[5] However, after public protests and condemnation by international bodies, the court's decision was reversed a few days later on 1 April.[6] [7]

On 4 August 2017, Venezuela convened a new Constituent Assembly after a special election which was boycotted by opposition parties.[6] The new Constituent Assembly is intended to rewrite the constitution; it also has wide legal powers allowing it to rule above all other state institutions. The Constituent Assembly meets within the Federal Legislative Palace; the leadership of the National Assembly have said it would continue its work as a legislature and it will still continue to meet in the same building.[8]

On 18 August the Constituent Assembly summoned the members of the National Assembly to attend a ceremony acknowledging its legal superiority; the opposition members of the National Assembly boycotted the event.[9] In response, the Constituent Assembly stripped the National Assembly of its legislative powers, assuming them for itself.[10] It justified the move by claiming that the National Assembly had failed to prevent what it called "opposition violence" in the form of the 2017 Venezuelan protests.[11] The constitutionality of this move has been questioned, and it has been condemned by several foreign governments and international bodies.[10] [12]

2020 contested leadership election

See main article: 2020 Venezuelan National Assembly Delegated Committee election. The 2020 Venezuelan National Assembly Delegated Committee election of 5 January, to elect the Board of Directors of the National Assembly was disrupted. The events resulted in two competing claims for the Presidency of the National Assembly: one by deputy Luis Parra and one by Juan Guaidó.[13] Parra was formerly a member of Justice First, but was expelled from the party on 20 December 2019 based on corruption allegations, which he denies. From inside the legislature, Parra declared himself president of the National Assembly; a move that was welcomed by Maduro administration.[14] The opposition disputed this outcome, saying that quorum had not been achieved and no votes had been counted. Police forces had blocked access to parliament to some opposition members, including Guaidó, and members of the media. Later in the day, a separate session was carried out at the headquarters of El Nacional newspaper, where 100 of the 167 deputies voted to re-elect Guaidó as president of the parliament. In his speech, Guaidó announced his resignation from Popular Will.[15]

Guaidó was sworn in a session on 7 January after forcing his way in through police barricades. Parra has reiterated his claim to the presidency of the parliament.[16]

Structure and powers

Under the current Bolivarian 1999 Constitution, the legislative branch of Government in Venezuela is represented by a unicameral National Assembly. The Assembly is made up of 167 seats[17] . Officials are elected by "universal, direct, personal, and secret" vote on a national party-list proportional representation system. In addition, three deputies are returned on a state-by-state basis, and three seats are reserved for representatives of Venezuela's indigenous peoples.[18]

All deputies serve five-year terms and must appoint a replacement (suplente) to stand in for them during periods of incapacity or absence. Under the 1999 constitution deputies could be reelected on up to two terms (Art. 192); under the 2009 Venezuelan constitutional referendum these term limits were removed.[19] Deputies must be Venezuelan citizens by birth, or naturalized Venezuelans with a period of residency in excess of 15 years; older than 21 on the day of the election; and have lived in the state for which they seek election during the previous four years (Art. 188).

Beyond passing legislation (and being able to block any of the president's legislative initiatives), the Assembly has a number of specific powers outlined in Article 187, including approving the budget, initiating impeachment proceedings against most government officials (including ministers and the Vice President, but not the President, who can only be removed through a recall referendum) and appointing the members of the electoral, judicial, and prosecutor's branches of government. Among others it also has the power to authorize foreign and domestic military action and to authorize the President to leave the national territory for more than 5 days.

The Assembly is led by a President with 2 Vice Presidents, and together with a secretary and an assistant secretary, they form the Assembly Directorial Board, and when it is on recess twice a year, they lead a Standing Commission of the National Assembly together with 28 other MPs.

Since 2010 the Assembly's 15 Permanent Committees, created by the 2010 Assembly Rules, are composed by MPs (ranging from the minimum of 7 to the maximum of 25) tackling legislation of various issues. The Committees' offices are housed in the José María Vargas Building in Caracas, few hundred yards from the Federal Legislative Palace, the former building is also where the offices of the Assembly leadership are located.[20]

Electoral system

In the 2000 Venezuelan parliamentary election, representatives were elected under a mixed member proportional representation, with 60% elected in single seat districts and the remainder by closed party list proportional representation.[21] This was an adaptation of the system previously used for the Venezuelan Chamber of Deputies,[22] which had been introduced in 1993, with a 50-50 balance between single seat districts and party lists,[23] and deputies per state proportional to population, but with a minimum of three deputies per state.[24]

Political composition

The first election of deputies to the new National Assembly took place on 30 July 2000. President Hugo Chávez' Fifth Republic Movement won 92 seats (56%). The opposition did not participate in the 2005 elections, and as a result gained no seats, while the Fifth Republic Movement gained 114 (69%). In 2007 a number of parties, including the Fifth Republic Movement, merged to create the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), which in January 2009 held 139 of the 169 seats (82%). In the 2010 election, for which the number of deputies was reduced to 165, the PSUV won 96 seats (58%), the opposition electoral coalition Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) 65, and Patria Para Todos won 2.

At the 2015 parliamentary election, the MUD won 109 of the 164 general seats and all three indigenous seats, which gave them a supermajority in the National Assembly; while the government's own coalition, the Great Patriotic Pole (GPP), won the remaining 55 seats. Voter turnout exceeded 70 percent.[25]

The result, however, was marred by the January 2016 suspension from the National Assembly by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice of 4 elected members of Parliament (MPs) from Amazonas state due to alleged voter fraud and election irregularities. 3 of the 4 were opposition deputies and one was from the government's coalition (GPP).

Following the 2017 Venezuelan Constituent Assembly election the new Venezuelan Constitutional Assembly was inaugurated which has the power to rule over all other state institutions and rewrite the constitution. As of May 2019, the Constituent Assembly mandate is expected to expire on 31 December 2020 (after next National Assembly elections), a measure that replaces the previous resolution of August 2017 that established its validity for at least two years.[26]

In 2020, Maduro’s United Socialist Party of Venezuela and allied parties claimed to have captured 67 percent of seats in the National Assembly, but that election was also disputed by EU and U.S. officials. Nevertheless, since then Maduro has exercised majority control of the Venezuelan parliament, displacing Juan Guaidó from his oppositional presidency.[27]

Members

Latest election

See main article: 2020 Venezuelan parliamentary election.

Representatives per state, 2016–2021

See also

Further reading

External links

10.5056°N -66.9158°W

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ley Orgánica de Procesos Electorales. Consejo Nacional Electoral. 4 April 2011. es. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20100929053531/http://www.cne.gov.ve/web/normativa_electoral/ley_organica_procesos_electorales/titulo2.php. 29 September 2010.
  2. Web site: Dos mil 719 candidatos se disputarán los curules de la Asamblea Nacional. Venezolana de Televisión. 4 April 2011. es. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110510075036/http://www.vtv.gov.ve/noticias-nacionales/37227. 10 May 2011.
  3. Web site: Archived copy . 28 January 2019 . 17 October 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191017074512/http://confinder.richmond.edu/admin/docs/venezuela.pdf . dead .
  4. News: Casey. Nicolas. Torres. Patrica. Venezuela Moves a Step Closer to One-Man Rule. 30 March 2017. New York Times. 30 March 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170502091859/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/30/world/americas/venezuelas-supreme-court-takes-power-from-legislature.html?_r=0. 2 May 2017.
  5. News: Venezuela's high court dissolves National Assembly. Rafael . Romo . cnn.com. 9 May 2018. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20171228170319/http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/30/americas/venezuela-dissolves-national-assembly/. 28 December 2017.
  6. News: Robins-Early. Nick. A Timeline of Venezuela's Months of Protests And Political Crisis. 20 August 2017. Huffington Post. 7 August 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170823124202/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/venezuela-crisis-timeline_us_5987330ae4b0cb15b1bf1b99. 23 August 2017.
  7. News: Venezuela crisis: How a socialist government has managed to make its people poorer. Sandhu. Serina. 15 August 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170820202513/https://inews.co.uk/essentials/news/world/venezuela-crisis-socialist-government-people-poorer/. 20 August 2017.
  8. News: La Asamblea Nacional continuará sesionando y trabajando desde el Palacio Federal Legislativo. 4 August 2017. La Patilla. 4 August 2017. es-ES. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170804220155/http://www.lapatilla.com/site/2017/08/04/la-asamblea-nacional-continuara-sesionando-y-trabajando-desde-el-palacio-federal-legislativo/. 4 August 2017.
  9. Sanchez. Fabiola. Pro-Government Assembly in Venezuela Takes Congress' Powers. 20 August 2017. Associated Press. US News. 18 August 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170820203252/https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2017-08-18/pro-government-assembly-in-venezuela-takes-congress-powers. 20 August 2017.
  10. News: Krygier. Rachelle. Faiola. Anthony. Venezuela's pro-government assembly moves to take power from elected congress. 20 August 2017. Washington Post. 18 August 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170818212427/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/venezuelas-pro-government-assembly-moves-to-take-power-from-elected-congress/2017/08/18/9c6cd0a2-8416-11e7-9e7a-20fa8d7a0db6_story.html. 18 August 2017.
  11. News: Mogollon. Mery. McDonnell. Patrick. Venezuela congress rejects what it denounces as government takeover. 20 August 2017. Los Angeles Times. 19 August 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170820020117/http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-venezuela-takoever-20170819-story.html. 20 August 2017.
  12. Web site: President Maduro strips Venezuela's parliament of power. Emma. Graham-Harrison. Virginia. López. 19 August 2017. the Guardian. 9 May 2018. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20180312173442/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/19/venezuela-crisis-deepens-maduro-strips-opposition-held-parliament-power. 12 March 2018.
  13. News: Two Venezuela lawmakers declare themselves Speaker. 2020-01-06. 2020-01-06. en-GB.
  14. Web site: Guaidó blocked from congress as Venezuelan conflict deepens. Sánchez. Fabiola. 5 January 2020. Associated Press. 2020-01-06.
  15. Web site: Juan Guaidó renunció a su partido Voluntad Popular para dedicarse a la presidencia interina de Venezuela. 5 January 2020. Infobae. es. 2020-01-07.
  16. Web site: Venezuela opposition leader takes new oath amidst standoff. Sanchez. Fabiola. 7 January 2020. Associated Press. 2020-01-07.
  17. Web site: Venezuela Summary. https://web.archive.org/web/20210113040435/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/static/e4ac1d7f27fc360694b441dd87a788dd/VE-summary.pdf. 13 January 2021. live.
  18. Web site: Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)'s Constitution of 1999 with Amendments through 2009.
  19. Web site: Debrief: New Report on Venezuela's Re-Election Referendum. 2021-03-12. NACLA. en.
  20. Web site: Asamblea Nacional. 2021-03-12. Asamblea Nacional. Spanish.
  21. CNN, Venezuela (Presidential), accessed 27 September 2010
  22. Donna Lee Van Cott (2005), From movements to parties in Latin America: the evolution of ethnic politics, Cambridge University Press. p29
  23. Crisp, Brian F. and Rey, Juan Carlos (2003), "The Sources of Electoral Reform in Venezuela", in Shugart, Matthew Soberg, and Martin P. Wattenberg, Mixed-Member Electoral Systems - The Best of Both Worlds?, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. pp. 173-194(22)
  24. Crisp and Rey(2003:175)
  25. News: Venezuela Opposition Won Majority of National Assembly Seats. 7 December 2015. Bloomberg. 7 December 2015. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20151206224919/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-12-06/venezuelans-to-vote-in-polls-seen-handing-congress-to-opposition. 6 December 2015. dmy-all.
  26. News: Venezuelan constituent extends its operation until the end of 2020. 21 May 2019. La Vanguardia. 21 May 2019. es.
  27. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/7/venezuelan-president-maduro-claims-sweep-of-boycotted-election "Venezuela’s Guaido vows to challenge Maduro’s congress win"