More than 90 days have passed since the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) declared the absence of Nicolás Maduro “forced” due to “foreign aggression” and “kidnapping”, and the organization Acceso a la Justicia warned this Friday that the silence of the National Assembly (AN) violates the Constitution and requires immediately qualifying whether it is a temporary or absolute absence.
According to the legal analysis published by the organization non-governmental, on January 3, 2026, the TSJ ordered that the executive vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, assume the Presidency “in charge” to guarantee the “administrative continuity of the State and the defense of the Nation.” However, the high court did not resolve the nature of the fault and limited itself to a precautionary measure, leaving the final decision in the hands of the AN.
The Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela establishes two clear figures:
- Temporary absence (article 234): The substitution by the executive vice president can last up to 90 days, extendable for another 90 days (maximum 180) by decision of the National Assembly.
- Absolute lack (article 233): Occurs due to death, resignation, dismissal, permanent disability, abandonment of the position declared by the AN or popular recall. If it occurs in the first four years of the mandate, elections must be called within 30 days.
Access to Justice maintains that, after the initial 90 days have passed without the AN having ruled, “the lack of definition becomes a constitutional violation” and the lack becomes absolute if it is not formally extended.
“The Constitution gives a clear response to the situation. There is no constitutional basis for the TSJ to have made a decision instead of the AN,” the organization states.
The entity recalled that jurists and organizations such as Provea had already warned about the expiration of the deadline on April 3 and demanded that the National Assembly fulfill its responsibility: either extend the temporary absence for another 90 days (if it is considered temporary) or declare it absolute, which would immediately activate the electoral mechanism.
“The parliamentary silence after three months consolidates a practice contrary to the Constitution and affects popular sovereignty,” the document concludes. The lack of definition, warns Access to Justice, generates institutional uncertainty, weakens the constitutional order and puts the political rights of Venezuelans at risk.
To date, neither the National Assembly nor the Supreme Court of Justice have issued new rulings on the classification of presidential misconduct.
