The Supreme Court of Venezuela, which is aligned with President Nicolas Maduro, announced that the presidential election will happen on July 28 this year. However, while Maduro is indeed running for re-election, his opponent, Maria Corina Machado, remains banned from holding public office by that very same Supreme Court.

Last year, Machado won the united opposition's primary with over 90% of the votes. However, she remains barred from holding any public office, which may mean the Venezuelan dictator may run unopposed in July.

With the ban on Maria Corina Machado currently in effect, a big question of who will challenge Maduro is still hanging on the opposition coalition, given that their most popular candidate to challenge the regime cannot run, according to Reuters.

Machado has already rejected the possibility of a substitute candidate, arguing that the ban was implemented by the Maduro regime so nobody viable could challenge him in July. However, a March 25 deadline to choose the opposition coalition's candidate may force their hand in choosing another candidate.

An alleged assassination attempt against Maduro that recently led to the arrests of several police and military personnel, as well as several opposition politicians, is also being used to blame Machado for working with the US in a plot to overthrow the Venezuelan strongman.

Venezuela Government Not Upholding Promise to Opposition in Barbados Agreement Over Elections

While the Venezuelan government is keeping its promise to the opposition that it would hold a presidential election in 2024, a promise it also made to the United States in exchange for sanctions being lifted, it is also not keeping its promise to keep it free and fair.

Critics have pointed out that Maria Corina Machado's continued ban is clear evidence that the Maduro regime is not planning to keep the elections free and fair, even accusing her of being part of a plot to kill Maduro.

According to the Associated Press, the Maduro administration and the united opposition coalition met in October last year in Barbados. One of the conditions they agreed upon was the promotion of the "authorization of all presidential candidates and political parties" to participate in the election as long as they comply with the law.

This means that Maduro's government agreed to let banned opposition candidates such as Machado run for office. With the Venezuelan Supreme Court, which many say is loyal to Maduro, upholding Machado's ban despite the agreement, international observers like the US, as well as the opposition and human rights organizations, have called the move a breach of the agreement, with the US reimposing some of the sanctions it previously lifted.

Venezuela Elections Happening Amid ICC Human Rights Probe

The announcement of the Venezuela presidential election date happened just days after the International Criminal Court (ICC) allowed a probe into the Maduro regime's human rights violations to continue after repeated meddling from the Venezuelan government.

El Paid noted that an investigation into these crimes against humanity was previously launched in late 2021, only for Venezuela to appeal that probe. In a unanimous vote, all judges in that ICC panel rejected Venezuela's appeal.

READ MORE: Venezuela Troop Build-Up Near Border Violates International Law, Warns Guyana

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Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Venezuela at a turning point: María Corina Machado on 2024 elections - AtlanticCouncil