SUB-NATIONAL ELECTIONS &

STATE R

EORGANIZATION

VENEZUELA 2012 and Beyond

Partido Socialista Unida de Venezuela (Beyond Chavez)

• Diosdado Cabello R. (First Vice President)

• Elías Jaua (capital region)

• Nicolás Maduro (Center-West Region)

• Francisco Arias Cárdenas (West Region)

• Tareck El Aissami (Andean Region) ]

• Yelitze Santaella (East Region)

• Adán Chávez (South Llanos Region)

• Ramón Rodríguez Chacín (North Llanos Region)

• Rafael Gil Barrios (South East Region)

Mesa de Unidad Democratica • Political Parties of Punto Fijo (Low Profile)

• Accion Democratica

• COPEI• MAS

• Fifth Republic Opposition

• Primero Justicia• Un Nuevo Tiempo• Proyecto Venezuela• Patria Para Todos• Alianza Bravo Pueblo• Podemos

Regions or States of Venezuela

Estado Candidato (MUD)Partido político

Candidato (GPP)Partido político

Candidato (Independiente)Partido político

Distrito Metropolitano de Caracas

Antonio Ledezma (consenso)Alianza Bravo Pueblo

AMAZONAS Liborio Guarulla (consenso)Movimiento Progresista

AnzoáteguiAntonio Barreto Sira (primarias)Acción Democrática

Aristóbulo Istúriz (PSUV)

Apure Luis Lippa (primarias)Fuerza Ciudadana

ARAGUA Richard Mardo (primarias)Primero Justicia

Tarek al AissamiPSUV

BARINAS Julio César Reyes (primarias)Avanzada Progresista

Adán ChávezPSUV

BolívarAndrés Velásquez (primarias)La Causa Radical

Francisco Rangel GómezPSUV

CaraboboHenrique Salas Feo (consenso)Proyecto Venezuela

Francisco AmeliachPSUV

Cojedes Alberto Galíndez (primarias)Avanzada Progresista

Delta Amacuro Arévalo Salazar (primarias)Movimiento al Socialismo

Falcón Gregorio Graterol (primarias)Independiente (Apoyado por PJ

Guárico José Manuel González (primarias)Independiente (Apoyado por AD)

Ramón Rodríguez ChacínPSUV

LaraHenri Falcón (consenso)Avanzada Progresista

Isis Ochoa PSUV

Mérida Léster Rodríguez (primarias)COPEI

MirandaHenrique Capriles Radonski Primero Justicia

Elías JauaPSUV

MonagasSoraya Hernandez (primarias)Independiente

Yelitze SantaellaPSUV

José Gregorio Briceño[6]

Movimiento Independiente Ganamos Todos

Nueva Esparta Morel Rodríguez Ávila (consenso)Acción Democrática

Carlos Mata FigueroaPartido Socialista Unido de Venezuela

Portuguesa Iván Colmenares (primarias)Independiente (Apoyado por COPEI)

Sucre Hernán Núñez (primarias)Voluntad Popular

TACHIRA César Pérez Vivas (consenso)COPEI

Jose Vielma MoraPSUV

TRUJILLO José Hernández (primarias)Independiente (Apoyado por COPEI)

Henry de Jesús Rangel Silva PSUV

Vargas José Manuel Olivares (primarias)Un Nuevo Tiempo

Jorge Luis García CarneiroPSUV

Yaracuy Biagio Pilieri (primarias)Convergencia Nacional

f

ZULIA Pablo Pérez Álvarez (consenso)Un Nuevo Tiempo

FRANCISCO Arias CárdenasPSUV

Local Elections: 2013 • PSUV controls

office of Mayor in 80% municipalities

• Maracaibo in hands of opposition

• Scheduled for April 14• Mayors – 335 in 23

states plus Capital District

• Council persons • Will plans for the comunal state render these elections meaningless?

Venezuelan Armed Forces • Operational Strategic

Commands

Admiral Diego MoleroMinister of Defense

(former head of Naval Intelligence)

Other Components of the Military Establishment

• National Guard – (Juan Francisco Romero

Figueroa)

• Bolivarian Militias: rule over Ranchos (shantytowns) • manage drugs• Power to intimidate if Chavez decides to

restructure the state

COMMUNE (COMUNA)Defined

• State separated into homogeneous districts based on socio-economic criteria

• Similar to feudal geopolitical entities of Middle Ages

• Socialist comunas revolve about public ownership of production & consumption

• Latin American comunas facilitate central control

•

• Paris Commune1871

Comunas: Buenos Aires, Argentina

• Organic Act of 2005 (Each Comunas would have a Community Board of 7 members directly elected by each district as representatives of their own Comunas)

• Goals of Comunas

• Citizen participation

• Equality and Redistribution

• Ensuring sustainable development

• Weakening traditional local state organization

• Improving efficiency of the government

• Promoting direct democracy within the city

Comunas overlay traditional political boundaries

• Greater implementation in rural areas

• Used to consolidate communist control over the island

• Channel distribution of goods by central government

• Coordinate indoctrination • Social “oversight” • Control over population

movement

Cuban Comunas

Venezuela: Rejection of “Bourgeoisie” Decentralization

• Municipal Reform legislation of 2005

• Law of Communal Councils 2006

• Comunas fail to pass Constitutional Referendum of December 2007

41,000 Comunal Councils (2012)

• Pre-electoral Phase• 16,000 Communal Councils

established in 2006 • 12,000 received funding for

a project• $5 Billion allocated for

communal councils as a group

• 300 communal Banks established

Operational Characteristics• Assembly• Executive Branch • Financial Unit• Auditing Branch

Legal Basis of Comunal State

• Published in the Gaceta Oficial Nº 6.011 Extraordinario

(December 21, 2010)

• Ley Orgánica del Poder Popular.

• Ley Orgánica de Planificación Pública y Popular.

• Ley Orgánica de Las Comunas.

• Ley Orgánica del Sistema Económico Comunal.

• Ley Orgánica de Contraloría Social.

• Territorial organization

• Transfer of powers from local governments

• Each comuna has different focal areas, i.e. fishing, production

• Direct linkage to national government

Venezuelan Comunas

• Not yet capable of taking over functions of municipio governments

• Resistance from governors and mayors

• Key to establishing centralized control should Chavez pass from the scene

Comunas 2012

Ministerio del Poder Popular para las Comunas y Protección Social

(2009)• Minister: Iris Ochoa• Purpose: manage relations

between comunas and central government

• SOP of control non-existent

• October 24 – Chavez threatens to eliminate ministry

• November 9,2012• Need institution superior

to comunas• Create more comunas