CARACAS - Venezuela is now accepting candidate registrations for its April 22 presidential elections, but opposition politicians and the United States are rejecting the terms of the poll. Venezuela is now accepting candidate registrations for its April 22 presidential electionsTania D'Amelio, an official of the National Electoral Council (CNE), said nominations would be accepted through Monday. The presidential elections, with Maduro seeking a new term that would keep him in office until 2025, are traditionally held in December. Maduro called Wednesday for snap legislative elections for the National Assembly, proposing to bring them forward by nearly two years to coincide with the April 22 poll. "We reject ruling party calls to replace the democratically elected National Assembly simultaneously, rather than in 2021, as provided for under the 1999 Constitution," said a State Department statement.

Source: Bangkok Post February 25, 2018 01:41 UTC