The winner is to be formally Steel Frame Modular House inaugurated Friday for a six-year-term."Maduro, a longtime foreign minister to Chavez, had counted on a wave of sympathy for the charismatic leader, and in victory, asked his spirit for help, holding up a crucifix pinned to a card showing Chavez.Sworn in as acting president after Chavez's March 5 death from cancer, Maduro squandered a double-digit advantage in opinion polls in two weeks as Capriles highlighted what he called the ruling Chavistas' abysmal management of the oil-rich country's economy and infrastructure, citing myriad woes including food and medicine shortages, worsening power outages and rampant crime.People stood on their balconies in Caracas apartment buildings banging pots and pans in protest as the electoral council's president proclaimed Nicolas Maduro president for the next six years.A lackluster public speaker whose standard rhetoric features attacks on "the extreme right" that he says is constantly conspiring against him, Maduro must now endeavor to hold together a movement built around the magnetism of the now-departed Chavez."The secretary-general of the Organization of American States, Jose Miguel Insulza, also called for a "full recount.One of the five members of the National Electoral Council, independent Vicente Diaz, also backed a full recount, as did the United States and the Organization of American States. Instead it invited witnesses to "accompany the process."
Maduro inherits a presidency made far more powerful under Chavez, who often succeeded in getting the National Assembly to let him rule by decree.Few outside Venezuela had bigger stakes in the race than Cuban President Raul Castro, whose country receives generous subsidized oil exports from Venezuela in exchange for sending doctors, military advisories and other help to Venezuela.The ruling socialists dominate the assembly, and legislative elections will not take place for another two years. There were no immediate reports of injuries. They are now stored in warehouses under the control of the military. Capriles did not offer further details, such as how many were involved.
