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Key Venezuela opposition leader calls for recall of Maduro | Key Venezuela opposition leader calls for recall of Maduro |
(35 minutes later) | |
CARACAS, Venezuela — The Venezuelan opposition’s top vote-getter is calling for a recall referendum against President Nicolas Maduro. | |
Two-time presidential candidate Henrique Capriles called for a referendum to oust the socialist leader Wednesday. Capriles, who leads the more moderate wing of Venezuela’s opposition, previously stopped short of calling for Maduro’s ouster. | |
Maduro has been on a collision course with opposition leaders since critics of Venezuela’s socialist government took control of Congress in January for the first time in more than a decade. Last week, the Supreme Court overturned the one decision Congress has made since being sworn in — their attempt to deny Maduro emergency powers to death with the economy. | |
Congress has been weighing several options for removing Maduro from office, including shortening his term, and calling a constitutional referendum. But many fear that the Supreme Court, which has never ruled against the executive branch, would simply overturn these efforts. | |
A voter referendum may be a longer and more risky path, but Capriles said it is one the government will be forced to recognize. | |
“Now is the time,” he said. “They will not be able to overturn a referendum.” | |
A governor who narrowly lost to Maduro in the last presidential election in 2013, Capriles leads the opposition party that won a plurality of seats in the new Congress. | A governor who narrowly lost to Maduro in the last presidential election in 2013, Capriles leads the opposition party that won a plurality of seats in the new Congress. |
Maduro’s approval ratings have languished in the 20 percent range for most of his term, but a recall referendum is no sure thing. The opposition would need to gather nearly 4 million signatures to trigger the recall process. If a vote is called, winning a simple majority will not be enough. The opposition will need to surpass the number of votes Maduro won in 2013. | |
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |