It’s out of his hands now

Hugo Chavez: destroyer of Venezuela or savior of the country’s poorest? Whichever you believe, after Sunday, it’s very possible that Chavez could be around to stay for another 10 or 20 years. Venezuelans go to the polls Feb. 15 to vote on a referendum over whether to lift term limits for their president and other ...

By , International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Colombia.
588530_090213_chavez5.jpg
588530_090213_chavez5.jpg

Hugo Chavez: destroyer of Venezuela or savior of the country’s poorest? Whichever you believe, after Sunday, it’s very possible that Chavez could be around to stay for another 10 or 20 years.

Venezuelans go to the polls Feb. 15 to vote on a referendum over whether to lift term limits for their president and other public officials. Chavez has called the referendum the crux of his self-titled bolivarian revolution. The opposition decries his increasing grip on power.

On the eve of the event, FP is featuring arguments from both sides. Check out Lucy Conger’s take on how crashing oil prices could stop Venezuela’s international ambitions in their tracks. Meanwhile, in an interview, two pro-Chavez legislators say that the fate of their country depends on Chavez. Off to the polls!

Photo: JUAN BARRETO/AFP/Getty Images

Elizabeth Dickinson is International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Colombia.

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