Venezuelan Leader Chávez Dies After Cancer Battle - Wall Street Journal
[h=3]By JOSÉ DE CÓRDOBA[/h]
WSJ's Mexico City Bureau Chief David Luhnow provides an overview of the late Venezuelan president's rule. For an in-depth look, watch:"Strongman - Hugo Chavez and His Legacy, A WSJ Documentary."
CARACAS, Venezuela—Hugo Chávez, a former tank commander turned populist politician who used Venezuela's oil riches to pursue his vision of socialism and challenge the U.S., died Tuesday from complications related to cancer. He was 58 years old.
With Mr. Chavéz just months into his fourth term, his death plunged Venezuela into political uncertainty. Vice President Nicolás Maduro will succeed Mr. Chávez as interim president, but must hold a new election within 30 days, according to the constitution.
[h=3]Hugo Chávez in Photos[/h]
AFP/Getty Images
[h=3]From Coup Leader to President[/h]See a timeline of the life of Hugo Chávez.
It seems likely Mr. Maduro will face off against opposition governor Henrique Capriles, who lost to Mr. Chávez in October's presidential election, but retained his governor's seat during an election in December.
Mr. Chávez's death is a blow to populist governments in the region, including those of Bolivia and Ecuador, which he led in a perennial campaign against American hegemony. His death could have major economic and political repercussions for Cuba, which receives billions in virtually free oil from Venezuela.
Domestically, Mr. Chávez leaves behind a deeply divided country with an economy in disarray, barely kept afloat by high oil prices.
For almost half his countrymen, Mr. Chávez was anathema, an authoritarian who fueled class hatred as he pursued what he called his Bolivarian Revolution. But for a majority of Venezuelans, Mr. Chávez was a messiah.
He was voted into power in 1998 on a tide of citizen disgust with the corruption of democratically elected politicians who had ruled Venezuela for three decades. He went on to dominate the country, which boasts the world's largest oil reserves, for the past 14 years, spending billions to create what he called "21st-century socialism."
A silver-tongued preacher-in-uniform, Mr. Chávez was the latest in a long line of military caudillos, or strongmen, who have left their mark in Latin America since the region gained independence from Spain and Portugal in the 19th century.
After failing to reach power through a military coup in 1992, Mr. Chávez proclaimed himself a democrat. But once in power, he proved difficult to remove. He changed the constitution twice to allow continuous re-election. He also used rhetoric to sharpen class divisions, pitting millions of poor Venezuelans against a prosperous middle and upper class, which he scornfully called "the squalid ones."
[h=3]By JOSÉ DE CÓRDOBA[/h]
WSJ's Mexico City Bureau Chief David Luhnow provides an overview of the late Venezuelan president's rule. For an in-depth look, watch:"Strongman - Hugo Chavez and His Legacy, A WSJ Documentary."
CARACAS, Venezuela—Hugo Chávez, a former tank commander turned populist politician who used Venezuela's oil riches to pursue his vision of socialism and challenge the U.S., died Tuesday from complications related to cancer. He was 58 years old.
With Mr. Chavéz just months into his fourth term, his death plunged Venezuela into political uncertainty. Vice President Nicolás Maduro will succeed Mr. Chávez as interim president, but must hold a new election within 30 days, according to the constitution.
[h=3]Hugo Chávez in Photos[/h]
AFP/Getty Images
[h=3]From Coup Leader to President[/h]See a timeline of the life of Hugo Chávez.
It seems likely Mr. Maduro will face off against opposition governor Henrique Capriles, who lost to Mr. Chávez in October's presidential election, but retained his governor's seat during an election in December.
Mr. Chávez's death is a blow to populist governments in the region, including those of Bolivia and Ecuador, which he led in a perennial campaign against American hegemony. His death could have major economic and political repercussions for Cuba, which receives billions in virtually free oil from Venezuela.
Domestically, Mr. Chávez leaves behind a deeply divided country with an economy in disarray, barely kept afloat by high oil prices.
For almost half his countrymen, Mr. Chávez was anathema, an authoritarian who fueled class hatred as he pursued what he called his Bolivarian Revolution. But for a majority of Venezuelans, Mr. Chávez was a messiah.
He was voted into power in 1998 on a tide of citizen disgust with the corruption of democratically elected politicians who had ruled Venezuela for three decades. He went on to dominate the country, which boasts the world's largest oil reserves, for the past 14 years, spending billions to create what he called "21st-century socialism."
A silver-tongued preacher-in-uniform, Mr. Chávez was the latest in a long line of military caudillos, or strongmen, who have left their mark in Latin America since the region gained independence from Spain and Portugal in the 19th century.
After failing to reach power through a military coup in 1992, Mr. Chávez proclaimed himself a democrat. But once in power, he proved difficult to remove. He changed the constitution twice to allow continuous re-election. He also used rhetoric to sharpen class divisions, pitting millions of poor Venezuelans against a prosperous middle and upper class, which he scornfully called "the squalid ones."