BY JIM WYSS
After 17 years of socialist rule, opposition wins control of legislature in landslide
Voting lines were long, particularly in opposition precincts, where frustration with faltering economy, crime is growing
Venezuela’s opposition won control of the National Assembly by a landslide on Sunday, delivering a major setback to the ruling party and altering the balance of power after 17 years of socialist rule.
The opposition won at least 99 seats in the 167-seat legislature, National Electoral Council President Tibisay Lucena announced after midnight. The socialist party won 46 seats and the remaining races have not yet been decided.
The streets of the Venezuelan capital of Caracas broke out in shouts of joy and fireworks after the partial results were announced. Opposition leaders had earlier claimed they won but gave no indication of the margin.
Within seconds of the results being announced, President Nicolas Maduro took to the airwaves to recognize the opposition’s win, saying that despite an adverse result Venezuela’s democracy and constitution had triumphed. But he recalled the long history of coups in Latin America and blamed what he called a “circumstantial” loss on opponents he said have been conspiring to destabilize his socialist revolution.
“I can say today that the economic war has triumphed,” Maduro said in a televised address from the presidential palace.
Former presidential candidate Henrique Capriles said on Twitter that “with great humility, serenity and maturity we accept what the people decided.”
The opposition victory dealt a serious blow to the socialist revolution started 17 years ago by the late Hugo Chavez, who until his death in 2013 had an almost-magical hold on the political aspirations of Venezuela’s long-excluded masses.
