They have hit the country’s already flailing economy. Millions of Venezuelans have fled, and half the country live in poverty.movement. The election had been widely viewed as a referendum on Maduro’s presidency. Having secured a majority in the 167-seat legislature, the centrist-conservative opposition was in a position to enact legislation tha
Social unrest, looting, and violence were on the rise, and in April the government was forced to reduce its workweek to two days in order to save energy (partly because of shortages of hydroelectric power brought about by El Niñeste-derived drought). Meanwhile, the opposition pushed forward with an effort to put Maduro to a recall vote. By early M
On August 4 Maduro was the target of an unsuccessful assassination attempt undertaken with two explosive-laden drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) that were detonated near him while he spoke to National Guard troops after a commemorative parade in Caracas. Maduro was unharmed. Responsibility for the assault was unclear.Candidates must register by lat
The administrative ban, however, did not keep her out of an October primary, because the opposition Unitary Platform coalition, which is backed by the United States, organized the vote without assistance from Venezuela’s electoral authorities.Television screens up and down the country only showed jubilant crowds, draped in the Venezuelan flag, da
A smooth Venezuelan election that would have led to greater economic opening also suited the country’s Latin American neighbors, including Mr. Maduro’s old allies, the leftist governments of Brazil and Colombia.In the 20th century Venezuela was transformed from a relatively poor agrarian society to a rapidly urbanizing one, a condition made pos