Exactly.
Posted on 12/03/2007 4:57:23 AM PST by yoe
Venezuelans on Sunday turned back President Hugo Chavez's bid to consolidate power and set himself up to rule for life through a series of constitutional reforms.
Chavez conceded defeat early Monday morning after the National Electoral Council showed he had 49.29% of the vote, compared with 50.7% for the "No" camp. Turnout was just 56%.
The narrow vote comes as a shocking rebuke for the anti-American Chavez, who swept to power in 1998 and was reelected last year with 63% of the vote.
The referendum deeply divided Venezuelans, and protesters have clashed in recent weeks. Opponents said the reforms were a power grab by Chavez, and would provide him the means to turn the OPEC nation into a Socialist state, while supporters said the changes would benefit the working poor. The reforms would have eliminated term limits, potentially handing Chavez, 53, the presidency for decades to come.
They would also have given the president control over the nation's Central Bank, allowed him to appoint loyalists as regionally elected leaders and reduce the official workday to six hours from eight.
Chavez had warned before yesterday's vote that a defeat could sink his revolution and prompt him to think about a successor. Without a constitutional reform, he will have to step down in 2013.
"He's going to be an elected dictator," said 77-year-old voter Ruben Rozenberg about Chavez, who has accused the U.S. government of plotting to thwart the vote.
In New York, tempers flared at the Venezuelan Consulate, where Chavez supporters and opponents waved the Venezuelan flag and shouted slogans at one another. Police barricades kept the groups separated, and no arrests were made.
A small bit of good news and unexpected, too...
Beleive that when you see it
Tell Jimmah to cash in the airplane tickets...
Jimmuh Caatah is soo sad
Exactly.
Another vote will be had when the opposition is sufficiently surpressedd in a year or so. This isn't over.
Also, considering the narrow "official" margin, it is still possible that Chavez will find some uncounted ballots somewhere.
This is just Hugh Chavez. Very series Hugh Chaves. Perhaps the mosy Hugh Chaves series to date.
Over several elections, completely accurate or not, Venezuelans have proved they deserve exactly what they got.
And do we really believe he will live up to what the people voted for. Um, no.
Indeed.
He’s a thug, he’s a communist, he’s an autocrat and he’s despicable — but he ain’t anywhere near as dumb as a lot of FReepers seem to think he is.
I admit I expected him to steal this election, but after he conceded, I thought about it some more and realized that backing off was a very sound tactical move.
After all, he hasn’t really lost anything. I mean, he didn’t get the extra goodies he was hoping for (this time) but he is still the ultimate full-gonzo bull gorilla in that jungle.
Plus he can point to his magnanimous concession of this election as proof that he has genuine democratic credentials.
He still has at least five years to get what he wants by hook or crook.
The “No” vote must have been huge, that Hugo can’t come up with the votes to overcome it.
Wow, this vote %age was close enough to steal...
or, maybe this was AFTER he tried to steal it, and the true vote was much bigger.
If you believe this guy will step down, I have some extra special carbon credits here I want to sell you.
He has six years left before he theoretically leaves office, and the closeness of this vote demonstrates that six years is plenty of time for him to figure out a way to cement life rule.
Hallelujah!
“And do we really believe he will live up to what the people voted for. Um, no.”
Our politicians don’t.
All he has to do is check with the dems in King county, Wa. They are very, very good at finding “uncounted ballots” that overturn previous election results.
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