More than 100 Venezuelan diaspora groups demand access to overseas voter registration

More than 100 Venezuelan diaspora organizations are demanding that the country reopen overseas voter registration and expand its consular network. They say Venezuelans abroad must be included from the first stage of any timetable for dialogue and institutional rebuilding, rather than added as a late adjustment.

The organizations warned that “it is not possible to consolidate the democratic transition or reinstitutionalize the country while leaving out the millions of Venezuelans who live abroad.” They said diaspora policy is “not a welfare or sectoral matter, but a constituent part of national reinstitutionalization and reconciliation.”

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It is not possible to consolidate the democratic transition or reinstitutionalize the country while leaving out the millions of Venezuelans who live abroad.

Their joint statement describes a large diaspora facing limited access to Venezuelan consular services. About 7.8 million Venezuelans live outside the country, including 6.9 million in Latin America and the Caribbean. Nearly 5 million are adults, a population equivalent to almost one-quarter of Venezuela’s national electoral register.

In 2024, only 106 overseas locations were authorized for voting, down from 118 in 2018. The organizations said several countries still lack fully functioning Venezuelan consular representation, despite the restoration of diplomatic relations with several countries and with the United States.

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Not a welfare or sectoral matter, but a constituent part of national reinstitutionalization and reconciliation.

They also documented limited access to registration. During the only overseas voter-registration and updating period, held from March 18 to April 16, 2024, authorities served just 6,528 people worldwide, or 0.16% of Venezuelans of voting age abroad. Only 69,211 people were authorized to vote overseas on July 28, 2024, representing 1.4% of the estimated adult diaspora.

The groups blamed restrictive interpretation of residency rules by the National Electoral Council, the closure of overseas registration despite its legally continuous status, and a documentary trap requiring a Venezuelan identity card that is not issued abroad. They added that a valid passport costing about $300, combined with other requirements, could bring the total cost to $700 for a migrant in countries such as Colombia, “turning the exercise of the right to vote into an economic privilege.”

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Turning the exercise of the right to vote into an economic privilege.