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Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and her coalition candidate Edmundo González drew enthusiastic crowds in their campaign to oust President Nicolas Maduro and end the ruling party’s 25 years of dominance.
But uncertainty remains about how Sunday’s election will proceed, with Maduro – whose 2018 re-election was deemed fraudulent by the United States and others – striking a confident tone and opposition figures and analysts warning of possible foul play.
González has strong support, even among supporters of the former ruling party, but the opposition and some observers have questioned whether the vote was fair, saying the election authorities’ decision and the arrest of some opposition campaign workers were aimed at removing obstacles.
Gonzalez and Machado urged voters to vote early and to “stay vigil” at polling stations until they close. They said they want the military to enforce the results.
Venezuela’s military has long backed Maduro and his predecessor, the late Hugo Chavez. Defense Minister Gen. Vladimir Padrino said the armed forces would respect the results of Sunday’s election.
Maduro, who has been in power since 2013 and is seeking a third six-year term, said the country had the most transparent electoral system in the world and warned of a “bloodbath” if he lost. His American colleagues were rebuffed.
Maduro’s government has led to an economic collapse, the emigration of about a third of the population, a sharp deterioration in diplomatic relations and sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union and other countries that have paralyzed the already struggling oil industry.
Nearly 8 million Venezuelans living abroad said they had difficulty registering to vote. Fewer than 68,000 appeared to be able to vote.
Some people choose to return home to participate.
Bus companies in the western state of Táchira, which borders Colombia, said their ticket sales had increased 40 percent in the past 10 days.
“We want to go home, but to a Venezuela that is free and prosperous,” said Maritza Quemba, 64, a seamstress who returned to San Cristobal to vote after living in Bogota for five years. She said she planned to move back to Venezuela within a year if the opposition wins.
“I came to vote for Edmundo. I believe in him and María Corina,” said Dani Pernia, 32, who traveled by bus from Chile through Peru, Ecuador and Colombia to vote in San Cristobal. “I’m ready to believe in change on Sunday.”
An official from the National Election Commission said on the 20th that more than 95% of the 30,000 ballot boxes across the country have been set up.
Gonzalez, 74, is known for his calm demeanor and promises of change that could bring many migrants home. He inherited the opposition role from Machado, 56, after the country’s Supreme Court upheld a ban on Machado holding public office. Machado won a landslide election victory last year in the opposition but has traveled the country on Gonzalez’s behalf.
Maduro, a 61-year-old former bus driver and foreign minister whose face will appear on the 13-party ballot, says he will guarantee peace and economic growth that will reduce Venezuela’s reliance on oil revenues.
Analysts said government spending increased only slightly during the campaign, a break from previous campaign generosity.
Maduro said he had opened 70 public works, but many of them were renovations of existing schools, hospitals and roads, according to coverage of the event broadcast on state television.
Thousands of people, including many public sector workers, traveled to downtown Caracas on hundreds of buses Thursday night for Maduro’s closing rally. Unlike many of the people around her, retired teacher Noris Rojas, 70, was not wearing a brand new Maduro T-shirt. Instead, she held a worn, homemade Chavez poster with a quote from the late president: “No one said it would be easy.”
“Maduro is a man who has shown spiritual strength and loyalty to the Chávez project,” she said. “Despite his weaknesses, he has to win. This is an opportunity to solve some economic and social problems, but this is a project that cannot be accomplished in one day.”
Venezuela’s attorney general this week denied any involvement in political persecution or holding political prisoners. He said the election should be peaceful.
Results could be announced on Sunday evening or in the following days. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time on Sunday.
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