Hugo Chavez’s ruling Socialist Party has won nearly all of Venezuela’s 23 states in elections, while Henrique Capriles, who lost to Chavez in October’s presidential vote, consolidated his position as top opposition leader by winning re-election as governor. Capriles, the 40-year-old governor of Miranda, beat Chavez’s former vice president Elias Jaua in elections on Sunday, and retained control of the country’s second-most populous state. The ruling party, however, extended its control over the South American OPEC nation, snatching four states from the opposition to win 20 of the 23 states. Possibly benefiting from a wave of sympathy over Chavez’s battle to recover from cancer surgery, it staged several upsets, including a victory in the most populous state of Zulia. The youthful Capriles’ re-election will help maintain unity among the opposition in a potential election against Vice President Nicolas Maduro, Chavez’s anointed successor.
