VENEZUELA: Voters Defend Their Democracy
By David Paul, TFA board member
Ed. Note: the author observed the regional elections in Venezuela that took place on November 20, 2021. It was the 27th election in the last 20 years since the election of Hugo Chavez in 1998. The following is his report:
This article was published in the Winter edition of TFA Reports accessible here: https://taskforceamericas.org/
The election took place during a massive disinformation campaign by the US government and US media, calling Venezuelan elections fraudulent, before the election, and without any evidence. I witnessed a very different reality. Thousands of candidates from 37 political parties and 43 regional organizations ran for positions of governors, mayors, regional legislatures, and municipalities. Unlike the US government’s claims, this election was a calm and very transparent process witnessed by 300 international observers including the United Nations, the Carter Center, CEELA, (Council of Latin American Election Experts), the National Lawyers Guild, and, for the first time, the European Union. We were free to closely watch the voting process and speak with the voters and workers at the voting stations. All voters present a national ID card, along with a verified thumbprint, and then vote on a machine which also produces a paper receipt verifying their vote. All political parties participate in every stage of the process, from examining voting machine software and observing the actual voting to involvement in the frequent audits during and after the voting, comparing the paper and machine counts. Opposition party members told me the voting process was fair and that they were proud to be a part of it. Although the economic, and psychological pressures caused by the US economic war are still evident, most people I met said the elections were in fact a reflection of the peace and stability of their country.
A coalition of parties and social movements organized by the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) won 19 of the 23 governorships and 210 of the 225 mayors. Opposition candidates won three state governor positions and one is still being contested pending a repeat election.
The pandemic and the US economic war of sanctions have crippled the economy, causing thousands of unnecessary deaths, and shortages of basic goods. Just having the elections was a demonstration of Venezuela’s determination and courage to defend their sovereignty. Millions voted to support their government, knowing it will lead to continued sanctions.
A few important events occurred leading up to the elections. There was a formal dialogue between the Maduro government and most opposition parties in which they agreed to reject violence and support the electoral process. The European Union finally sent a delegation to observe the elections and no longer recognizes the US-backed self-declared “interim president” Juan Guaidó. Two opposition party members joined the five member Nacional Electoral Council overseeing the elections. Recently the UN overwhelmingly voted to recognize the democratically elected Maduro government as the only government, with only 15 nations continuing the US false narrative of Juan Guaidó as president. He holds no government position.
While observing the enthusiasm of the many poll workers and the open and fair electoral process, it was hard not to think of the contrast with US elections and the gross hypocrisy of US calling Venezuela’s election a fraud while in the US the electoral process itself is essentially flawed.
The US makes claims of fraudulent elections in Venezuela to justify continuing its economic coercive measures, or sanctions, which include the theft of financial assets and the blocking of food, fuel, and medicines, all of which is clearly illegal according to the UN charter and international law. Sanctions are intended to punish Venezuela for its defiance of having an election that reflects the will of its people, rather than accept a leader picked by the US who would prioritize the interests of US corporations and local oligarchs over the needs of the Venezuelan people.
The political revolution which began with the presidency of Hugo Chavez in 1998 ignited a sense of pride and dignity that was so evident in many conversations I had with people there. They are committed to defending their democracy, as well as combating the institutional corruption and bureaucracy that have existed since long before Chavez. They see the Bolivarian revolution as a process, constructing a form of socialism, not a utopia, to which too often foreign critics seem to want to make a comparison.
It was clear to me that the survival of this process in Venezuela is important for the struggle of poor and working-class people all over Latin America to defend their sovereignty against the predatory capitalism that the US empire continues to try to impose on them. Many challenges and internal debates exist in Venezuela, but it is a process that they have a right to pursue without US interference. There is much we can learn from their electoral process and what a resulting representative democracy could and should look like here in the US.