At stake in this Referendum:

• Amendments to the Constitution

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias *
• Head of Government: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias
• Assembly: Venezuela has a unicameral National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional) with 167 seats. ***

* The president is both the chief of state and head of government. The president is elected by popular vote to serve a 6-year term which is renewable once.

*** 65 members are elected through a party-list proportional representation system and 99 by plurality vote in single- and multi-member constituencies (68 in single-member and 31 in multi-member constituencies). Three seats are reserved for the indigenous peoples of Venezuela. All members serve 5-year terms.

Main provisions in the Referendum:

• Voters were asked if they approve Block A or Block B of constitutional amendments. (Block A and Block B each contained various amended articles of the constitution).

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 26,023,528 (July 2007 est)
• Registered Voters: 15,921,223 (November 2006 est.)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 13,835,712 (2007)

·         Is Venezuela a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)

·         Has Venezuela ratified CEDAW: Yes (2 May 1983)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: N/A

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 29 (following the 2005 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 71 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Very Low (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Venezuela a signatory to CRPD: No

·         Has Venezuela ratified CRPD: Yes, accession (24 September 2013)

·         Population with a disability: 3,903,529 (est.)