Gov’t, opposition rally to get out the vote in Venezuela

Caracas, Nov 18 (EFE).- Government and opposition supporters took to the streets here Friday for events aimed at inspiring Venezuelans to cast ballots in his weekend’s municipal and regional elections.

The final day of campaigning before Sunday’s vote witnessed an atmosphere of amity long absent from politics in deeply polarized Venezuela, as partisans of the leftist government and the opposition canvassed and handed out leaflets in close proximity to one another in various parts of Caracas without incident.

At a rally of the ruling PSUV party, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said that the election would provide a “democratic lesson for the world’s empires to learn to respect Venezuela.”

Speaking in support of the re-election bid of the PSUV governor of Miranda state, Jorge Rodriguez, she said that the oil-rich Andean nation will preserve the legacy of the party’s founder, late President Hugo Chavez.

Hector Rodriguez, widely seen as the likely political heir of President Nicolas Maduro, vowed to give the PSUV its biggest-ever victory in the state, which has traditionally been an opposition bastion.

In the opposition-controlled capital municipality of Chacao, incumbent Mayor Gustavo Duque urged his supporters to turn out in force at the polls.

After boycotting every election since 2017, the opposition are taking part on this occasion and hoping for a large turnout.

“We are concluding the electoral campaign in Chacao with much pride, surrounded by thousands of neighbors who came to give us a boost,” Duque told Efe, adding that he wants to “shake up Venezuelan politics in a positive way.” EFE gdl/dr