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Venezuela Page |
Welcome to ElectionInfo.com's pages on Venezuela
Official Name: Republic of Venezuela
Capital: Caracas
Area: 912,050 square kilometres ( 352,144 square miles )
Major cities (Population)
Caracas 2,959,000 (1995)
Maracaibo 1,207,513 (1991)
Valencia 1,034,033 (1992 estimate)
Barquisimeto 602,622 (1991)
Population: 21,844,000 (1995 estimate)
Population growth rate: 2.3 per cent (1990-1995 average)
Type of government: Republic
Independence: 5 July 1811 (from Spain)
Constitution: 23 January 1961
Voting Rights: Universal at age 18
Government
Venezuela's president is executive head of state, while the National Congress consists of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies. The country is divided into 20 states, two federal territories, a federal district, and a number of federal dependencies. The number of members in each house of Congress can vary for a number of reasons—former presidents are ex-officio senators; territories can elect senators when their populations reach a certain level; minority interests can also qualify for representation—but there are usually about 45 senators and more than 200 deputies. The president and members of Congress are elected for concurrent five-year terms. The voting age is 18.
Recent History
Since 1958 power has more or less alternated between the Democratic Action (AD) party and the Social Christians (COPEI). Carlos Andrés Pérez Rodríguez of the AD, a former president who was re-elected in 1988, introduced tough measures to address the debt problem and the country's over-dependence on oil, the price of which had fallen sharply since the mid-1980s. Riots that resulted from the plan were stifled by the military. Pérez continued with his reforms, but opposition to him became increasingly violent. After large, violent demonstrations, labour strikes, and two attempted military coups in 1992, he was finally suspended by Congress in May 1993 in the wake of a corruption scandal. Senator Ramón José Velásquez assumed control of government as interim president. In December 1993 Rafael Caldera Rodríguez, leader of COPEI and Venezuela's president from 1969 to 1974, was again elected the country's chief executive, but without a majority in Congress. In his election campaign he had promised to attack corruption and stop the reforms started by Pérez, but the government soon found itself deep in an economic crisis.
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