Elections in Venezuela: the most pyrrhic victory in the history of Chavismo

The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, said this Monday that his position has been ratified and “re-ratified” after the triumph of Chavismo in the legislative elections in which the opposition did not participate and that reached an abstention of about 80%. A Pyrrhic triumph, as Hugo Chávez would say in 2007.

Chavismo sings victory in the legislative elections on Sunday this Monday. But is winning an election with an abstention of close to 80% something “overwhelming”, as Nicolás Maduro said? According to the National Electoral Council (CNE), the participation figure is close to 30%, slightly higher than in 2005 when the opposition did not participate in an electoral process either.

In the last parliamentary elections, won by the opposition, 74.25% of the electoral roll participated and they became the most attended legislative votes in the history of the South American country. Since then, the abstentionist tendency has been growing due to distrust in the electoral referee and in the voting.

See more: Abstention exceeded 80% in some sectors of Venezuela

The first bulletin of the CNE, with a count of 82.35%, indicates that Chavismo obtained 67.6% of the votes cast, about 3,558,320. The Alternative Democratic coalition, which groups together opposition parties that went to the elections after the Supreme Court of Justice appointed them new boards of directors, won 944,665 votes, 17.95% of those counted so far.

In Sunday’s elections 277 seats were disputed in the National Assembly, 110 more than in the last parliamentary election. Chavismo needs at least 185 legislators in the new NA, which will be installed on January 5, 2021, to have a qualified majority of two-thirds with which they can take full control of the Chamber and exercise all legislative powers.

Crushing victory?

“We have had a tremendous electoral victory,” said President Nicolás Maduro after the first report, although the exact number of seats won by the Gran Polo Patriótico, the party platform that supports him, is not yet known. However, with the number of votes and the very low turnout, many remember that phrase of President Hugo Chávez in 2007, when the opposition once won an election: “It was a Pyrrhic victory.”

See more: National Assembly of Venezuela, the key to power?

And if the electoral roll is taken into account, this Sunday has been the most pyrrhic victory in the history of Chavismo. Because although it won the majority in Parliament, Chavismo loses more internal and external legitimacy, something that has been happening since 2017.

The Colombian Government reiterated that it will not recognize the results of the elections, which he considers “fraudulent” and promoted by an “illegitimate regime”. Pronouncements are expected from the United States and the European Union, whose representative announced that they were aware of the “very low turnout” in the elections and would issue a statement throughout the day.

“Here we are ratified and re-ratified by the love, the vote and the passion of a people,” Maduro said after celebrating the “great victory” of Chavismo and referring to the approach he made days ago when he indicated that he would leave the Presidency if the opposition he did with the majority in Parliament.

In statements broadcast by the state channel VTV, the president indicated that “he would not return” to make that promise because, as he said, he received many messages from supporters who expressed “sadness.”

For his part, the first vice president of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), Diosdado Cabello, also celebrated the Chavista triumph and expressed his joy after knowing the electoral results.

See more: This is what Venezuelans think about the legislative elections

“We have many reasons to be happy,” said Cabello during a meeting of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) celebrating the results.

The victory, at the same time, adds Parliament to the power that Chavismo maintains in Venezuela: it controls 19 of the 23 governorates, commands 305 of the 335 mayors, it has 227 of the 251 deputies of the regional legislative assemblies.

In addition, almost 9 out of 10 councilors, who deliberate in municipal parliaments, respond to the guidelines of Chavismo. What was yesterday’s day? More of the same, according to the Venezuelan analyst and economist, Luis Vicente León.