Civil Society and Electoral Accountability In Venezuela

Abstract

Venezuela has one of the longest democratic traditions in the hemisphere. Regular and reasonably competitive elections have been held since 1958, with two centrist parties dominating the political scene up until the 1990s. This chapter describes the ambiguous role of Venezuelan civil society in the struggle for electoral accountability in Venezuela from the early 1990s to 2009. During this period the Venezuelan political system underwent significant changes after the election of Hugo Chávez to the presidency in 1998 and the passage of a new constitution in 1999. Since then, Venezuelan politics has been characterized by increasingly polarized political competition between Chávez supporters and an opposition embodied in shifting alliances among the business elite and members of traditional political parties. This competition has not always been peaceful, as exemplified by street violence during the abortive coup attempt against Chávez in 2002. At the root of Venezuela’s political polarization lies a debate about how to define, understand and practice democracy (Ellner 2010).