The Referendum in Venezuela: Elections versus Democracy

Issue Date January 2005
Volume 16
Issue 1
Page Numbers 124-37
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Venezuela’s recent recall referendum of President Hugo Chavez was a huge challenge for the opposition which eventually lead to a exhausting and disappointing conclusion. While charges of electronic fraud in the actual voting or vote-counting are unproven, the dubious and even illegal tactics that the Chavez regime used throughout the larger process point to rampant “institutional fraud” that is undermining Venezuelan democracy.