Crisis-weary Venezuelans are voting in election decried as a Maduro power grab

CARACAS — Venezuelans went to the polls Sunday in an internationally condemned election that critics call a power grab by President Nicolás Maduro, who is seeking a new six-year term.

Traditional opposition parties in this crisis-plagued nation of 31 million have been largely prevented from fielding candidates. They have called for a boycott of Sunday’s vote, claiming that Maduro is moving to seize dictatorial powers. 

The government deployed 300,000 troops to keep watch at polling stations across the country. Government officials claimed a massive early turnout, with more than 2 million — or 10 percent — of registered voters already casting ballots by 9:45 a.m. But at a sampling of a dozen stations in the capital, voting lines were thin to empty after polls opened at 6 a.m. Voting was set to close at 6 p.m., though some stations were expected to remain open later.

This oil-rich nation is facing a near-total societal collapse because of mismanagement, corruption and a crumbling socialist system, fueling widespread hunger, medical shortages and a fast-expanding migrant crisis. Maduro — the anointed successor of left-wing firebrand Hugo Chávez, who died in 2013 — is facing two main challengers: Henri Falcón, a former governor, and Javier Bertucci, an evangelical preacher. 

[Venezuela’s economy is so bad, parents are leaving their children at orphanages]

Ahead of the vote, some polls showed Maduro and Falcón, who broke with Chávez in 2010, running almost neck and neck. Falcón supporters hoped for a historic upset, saying their candidate’s plan to dollarize the broken economy to curb the world’s highest inflation rate had struck a chord with a starving populous. 

Opposition supporters struggled with whether to honor the boycott or vote. In eastern Caracas, Maria Diaz, a 30-year-old accountant whose infant child died in a public hospital last month because of a lack of medicines, said she voted for Falcón “because I don’t think you win anything by abstaining.”

“Look, the country’s situation, especially food and medicine, are really bad,” she said. “We need change.”

Those honoring the boycott spoke of a crash of emotions — anger at the government, disappointment with the divided opposition, and frustration that exhausted Venezuelans were not taking to the streets.

“I am not going to vote. For what?” said Freddy Álvarez, a 43-year old merchant arguing with his friend about the election at a bakery in western Caracas. Last year, tens of thousands joined anti-government marches, but those protests have largely died out. 

“To see a change here, people need to take the streets again,” Álvarez said. “We will not overthrown Maduro with votes. I do not understand why people are so apathetic.”

[A Venezuelan woman had grown used to shortages. Then her HIV drugs ran out.]

A salsa-loving former truck driver and union leader, Maduro, 55, has sought victory by doling out food at rallies and railing against “el Imperio” — the Empire, as he often labels the United States. On Sunday, pro-government vans with loud speakers roamed the streets, evoking the name of Chávez and urging Maduro supporters to turn out. 

“Let’s vote! Let’s defend President Chávez’s legacy! Don’t stay at home!” a loudspeaker boomed from one of the vans.

Some Maduro backers said they agreed that outside enemies and domestic oligarchs were to blame for the country’s woes. 

“All the difficulties we’re having are because of an economic war,” said Obdulia Herrera, a 65-year old retired teacher. “Foreign countries are blocking everything, including medicines. If the opposition wins, we won’t get benefits anymore.”

Maduro critics say his government has committed fraud to win the last three elections and predicted that the incumbent would ensure his victory. 

“There are no conditions under which the electoral commission will announce results that aren’t the ones they have already prepared,” said Juan Pablo Guanipa, an opposition leader. He added, “The real truth is that this is an orchestrated farce to keep Maduro in power without popular support.”

[Oil was the only thing keeping Venezuela afloat. Now the government is too dysfunctional to even pump it.]

Some analysts, however, say Maduro could win without vote rigging, because his government has already created an uneven playing field by barring his strongest opponents and monopolizing media time.

In addition, many Venezuelans said they feared they or their relatives would lose government jobs if they failed to support Maduro. Even more were worried about losing access to subsided government food boxes — known as CLAP boxes — that have become the main source of sustenance for millions. At many polling stations, officials had set up registration booths for government benefits.

“I already voted and I’m now going to register for benefits, because that’s what they’re telling us to do,” said Andrea Hernández, 19-year-old holding her 3-month-old daughter. “The bonuses, the CLAP boxes. If I don’t vote for the government, they might stop giving me these benefits.” 

State TV showed Maduro as he cast his vote. 

“We an example of democracy to the whole world,” he tweeted. 

Dozens of countries have criticized the elections, saying they won’t recognize the results. After uninviting Maduro to the Summit of the Americas last month in Peru, the Lima Group — 11 South American nations and Canada — said it would reject the vote. Last week, it issued a final call for Venezuela to cancel the vote.

“The elections have been convoked by an illegitimate authority, without the participation of all the Venezuelan political actors, without independent international observation, and without the guarantees necessary for a free, transparent and democratic process,” it said in a join statement released after a meeting in Mexico to discuss the Venezuelan situation. 

[As Trump tightens asylum rules, thousands of Venezuelans find a warm welcome in Miami]

In the United States, Vice President Pence has urged other nations to reject the vote and increase pressure on the country. Addressing the Organization of American States, Pence called the vote “fake elections with fake results.” Last week, the United States added to the list of Venezuelan officials sanctioned, targeting the powerful head of the ruling party, Diosdado Cabello, and his family members. Pence signaled that U.S. pressure would deepen after Sunday’s vote. 

Yet a number of global autocrats, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin, have backed Maduro. The Russians, in particular, have emerged as Maduro’s main benefactors, through loans and investments in Venezuela’s crumbling energy sector. Moscow dispatched a 14-member mission to serve as international observers of Sunday’s vote. 

“We will be working in Caracas and other cities, and our work is based on respect and humanitarian and electoral principles,” said Vassily Linkachev, head of the Russian delegation. “We're sure that every Venezuelan will vote freely to chose their president.”

Nevertheless, leading up the vote, allegations of early fraud spread fast. Last week, the Venezuelan human rights group REDES accused the government of enlisting leftist Colombian guerillas to pressure Venezuelans in the border region to vote. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos also denounced an alleged plan to bus Colombians into Venezuela to register them as pro-government voters. 

Maduro is seeking to stay in power at time when, by every statistical measure, his country is collapsing. Poverty and hunger are reaching intolerable levels. Hyperinflation is skyrocketing toward 14,000 percent. 

Security forces are deserting in droves, and the government has launched a wave of arrests to stem disloyalty in the ranks. Water, electricity and transportation are breaking down, sparking micro-protests across the nation. At the same time, Venezuela’s chief industry — oil — is falling apart, and the nation’s creditors are moving to seize its overseas assets. 

More than 1 million Venezuelans — many of them starving and desperate for medical aid — have fled the country since 2015.

Rachelle Krygier and Mariana Zuñiga contributed to this report. 

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