THOMSON/PINO: Chavez holds Venezuela

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By John R. Thomson and Norman Pino

COMMENTARY:

Hugo Chavez's victory in the Feb. 15 referendum that allows him to serve as president of Venezuela for as long as he is elected to six year terms, is remarkable for a number of reasons: The "Yes" vote in favor of the constitutional change removing term limits outnumbered the "No" vote by virtually the same percentage as in the Nov. 7 state and local elections, 55 percent and 45 percent in both elections, not considering fractional differences.

Last Sunday's vote denotes a decreasing margin between Chavista forces and the opposition; a difference that stood at almost 17 percent in 1998, increased to almost 26 percent in 2006, but slumped to slightly more than 8 percent this past Sunday.

An exceptionally high 70 percent of registered voters cast ballots, roughly 6 million voting "Yes" and 5 million, "No" - the highest number of opposition votes cast in 15 elections during the 10 years since Mr. Chavez was first elected.

The election followed months of governmental preparations, including.

• Adding hundreds of new polling places, which made it impossible for opposition poll watchers to cover a large number of voting sites.

• Using paper ballots at many of the new sites, making it relatively easy to "lose" or otherwise dispose of significant numbers of presumed "No" votes.

• Registering thousands of Colombian and other illegal immigrants after giving them coveted residence visas and ID cards.

• Disallowing registration of thousands of 18 year old first-time-eligible voters.

• Demanding all government employees and contractors vote, virtually sure their ballots would favor the proposal and thus their employment longevity.