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Economy:
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Venezuela regional elections: PSUV candidates win 20 out of 23 states
by
Jorge Martin
Candidates of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) won
the governor elections on December 16 in 20 out of the country’s 23
states, including in 5 which were ruled by the opposition MUD. The
reactionary opposition’s only consolation was that it kept the important
Miranda state where their defeated presidential candidate Henrique
Capriles Radonski beat former vice president Elias Jaua.
The regional elections came after the victory of Hugo Chávez in the
October 7 presidential elections. Clearly, the defeat of the opposition on
October 7, when they had convinced themselves they could win, had a
demoralising effect amongst their ranks.
Bolivarian candidates won by large margins in Apure (62% to 23%),
Cojedes (62 – 37), Delta Amacuro (75 – 22), Falcón (50 – 36), Guárico
(73 – 26), Portuguesa (53 – 21, with another revolutionary candidate
getting 23%), Sucre (59 – 36), Trujillo (81-17), Yaracuy (60-38) and
Vargas (73 – 25).
Very significant were the victories for PSUV candidates in 5 states
which were ruled by the opposition. This included Zulia, the country’s
most populous state which had been ruled by the opposition since 2000;