Venezuela · Politics
A Venezuelan opposition negotiator says the election timetable will follow the Constitution and the laws.
Juan Miguel Matheus, a member of the opposition delegation at the US-backed dialogue table in Caracas, said on Sunday 15 November 2026 that the election timetable follows what the Constitution and the laws establish, according to Monitoreamos, 15 November 2026. He spoke in an interview with Margarita Oropeza, a Venezuelan television journalist.
Monitoreamos is a Venezuelan news site. Washington facilitates the talks, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said elections should ideally be held in 2027, as Anadolu Agency, a Turkish news agency, 6 November 2026, reported.
For US readers the open question is when Venezuelans will vote, and no date has been fixed.
Key Facts
—What. Matheus says the election timetable follows the Constitution and the laws.
—Date. No election date has been fixed at the Caracas talks.
—Who. The United States facilitates the talks, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio hopes for elections in 2027.
—Open. Pending topics include Venezuela’s Supreme Court, the Parties Law on party rules and free speech.
—Prediction markets. Polymarket, a prediction platform, gives 9.5% for a vote scheduled by 31 December 2026 (15 November, 1:13 p.m. ET).
What Matheus Said
In the interview carried by Monitoreamos on 15 November 2026, Matheus said: “The timetable will be set according to what the Constitution establishes and what the laws establish.” He said this in an interview that Monitoreamos reported (our translation from Spanish).
He also said: “More than talking about dates, we have to talk about certainty and deep conditions” (Monitoreamos, 15 November 2026; our translation).
Matheus said the change must go deep, to inaugurate “a democratic system that can last over time”, according to Monitoreamos on 15 November 2026. He did not name a date.
He said a political agreement could come with the backing of the United States as facilitator (Monitoreamos, 15 November 2026). The interviewer recalled Rubio’s remark about 2027, but Matheus did not confirm that year.
Where the Talks Stand
The table was installed on Thursday 6 August 2026 at La Carlota, a military air base in Caracas, backed by the United States, El Peruano, Peru’s official state daily, reported on 6 August 2026. The government delegation is led by Jorge Rodríguez, president of the National Assembly, and the opposition group by former deputy Dinorah Figuera.
Matheus sits in the opposition group. María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia do not take part, El Peruano reported on 6 August 2026.
Before the talks, El Tiempo, a Colombian daily, reported on 4 August 2026 that the agenda was to include the electoral timetable and the naming of a new National Electoral Council (CNE). It was also to cover the mechanism to enable candidates and the return of party registration cards to political organisations.
Rubio said at the White House on Thursday 5 November 2026 that elections in Venezuela would “ideally” take place next year, Anadolu Agency reported on 6 November 2026. He did not guarantee it.
Matheus said on 15 November 2026 that the negotiation runs in cycles, and that the fourth cycle takes up earlier work and opens new topics, including transformation of the electoral system (Monitoreamos). The pending topics he named are the justice system, the appointment of new Supreme Court magistrates, reform of the Parties Law (the rules for political parties) and freedom of expression.
For earlier coverage, see our report on the fourth round of talks. More is in our Venezuela news section.
What Is Not Known
No election date has been fixed. Rubio’s “ideally 2027” is a stated hope, not a date.
Matheus did not confirm 2027 in the interview reported by Monitoreamos on 15 November 2026. The government side is led by Jorge Rodríguez and the opposition side by Dinorah Figuera, according to El Peruano on 6 August 2026.
Readers should watch whether the next cycle of talks produces a confirmed date.
What Prediction Markets Say
Polymarket, an online prediction market, lists the question “Venezuela presidential election scheduled by…?”, with US$679,909 traded across the whole event, although the open date markets trade far less, as of 1:13 p.m. ET on 15 November 2026 (18:13 UTC). The prices below show the chance traders give to a vote being scheduled by each date, and the later dates trade thinly, with the 30 June 2027 price resting on very little volume.
- By 31 December 2026: 9.5%
- By 31 March 2027: 28.5%
- By 30 June 2027: 49.0%
These prices are bets, not polls. They price the scheduling of a vote, not who wins and not when ballots are cast, and the resolution rules are Polymarket’s.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will Venezuela hold its next presidential election?
No date has been fixed. Rubio said on 5 November 2026 that elections should ideally be held in 2027, and Matheus did not confirm that year on 15 November 2026.
Who is Juan Miguel Matheus?
He is a member of the opposition delegation at the US-backed dialogue table in Caracas. He gave an interview to journalist Margarita Oropeza on 15 November 2026, carried by Monitoreamos.
What is on the agenda of the talks?
El Tiempo reported on 4 August 2026 that the agenda was to include the electoral timetable, a new National Electoral Council, a mechanism to enable candidates and the return of party registration cards. Matheus named further pending topics on 15 November 2026.
Sources: Monitoreamos, 15 November 2026; El Peruano, 6 August 2026; El Tiempo, 4 August 2026; Anadolu Agency, 6 November 2026; Polymarket, 15 November 2026, 1:13 p.m. ET.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error
Venezuela and the United States
- What Is Going On Between Venezuela and the United States?
- What Is Going On Between Venezuela and the United States?
- Venezuela Geopolitics Explained, US Now Runs Its Oil
- Venezuela Politics 2026, Who Holds Power After Maduro