Venezuela Presidential Elections: Handpicked Chavez’s Successor Nicolas Maduro Wins; Opposition Files Protest

Following the demise of Hugo Chavez on March 5, Venezuelans took to the polls on April 14 to choose the next president. Competing for the post are candidates Nicolas Maduro, who had been acting as president since the passing of Hugo Chavez and incumbent governor of Miranda State, Henrique Capriles. Nicolas Maduro, handpicked by Chavez as his successor was formerly a truck driver, a member of the trade union and a socialist through and through. Henrique Capriles is a centrist and a lawyer. He had run for presidency before but lost to Chavez.

The electronic voting went on smoothly, according to international observers, even if the line was long as many turned out to cast their votes. One machine verifies the identity of the voter through fingerprint while the other machine verifies the identity card number of the voter and registers the vote.

Three hours after the closing of the voting precincts, the votes were counted. Before the end of the day, the winner was announced. Chavez’s handpicked successor, Nicolas Maduro was declared the winner, garnering 50.7% of the votes. Immediately after the announcement, the opposition filed for a recount.

Irregularities

Even during the campaign period there had been speculations that there would be irregularities in the elections. And during the electronic voting, a Tweet from Mr. Capriles suggested that an attempt to doctor the election results was possible. Government officials stated that there had been about a dozen irregularities, which they deemed as minor, some of which were pointed out by officials of the opposition. The opposition candidate has accused Mr. Maduro of continuously campaigning on state-run television on the eve of the election, which was against the country’s election laws.

Riding on Chavez’s popularity

Before he died, Chavez had publicly proclaimed that he had selected Maduro as his successor, which effectively changed the political scenario in Venezuela. Using that as his biggest advantage, Maduro blatantly used it during his campaign sorties. He had a copy of Chavez singing of the national anthem played during his campaign. His campaign theme was the recorded voice of Chavez proclaiming him as the chosen successor. He proclaimed that he was not Chavez but that he was the son of Chavez although they were not blood related. He was also shown visiting the tomb of Chavez, which was against election laws, according to Capriles. He also vowed to continue what Chavez’s had started.

What is in store for Venezuela?

Chavez was a strong leader but his methods created many enemies. Opposition leaders have accused Chavez of trying to build a one-party system and being an autocrat. He had left a nation that has been suffering from a deteriorating infrastructure, with industries that are under-performing and public spending that is unsustainable.

With the election protests, the candidates have both requested the public to remain calm and wait for the official results. The opposition though had claimed that they will defend the outcome of the elections.

The nation is gearing for a big fight.