Slate writer Alexandra Starr has a good dispatch from the campaign trail in Venezuela. Worth reading:
CARACAS, Venezuela—During the 2004 U.S. election, the division between Bush-Cheney supporters and anyone-but-Bush voters set a high-water mark for political polarization. But compared to the electoral rift that exists in Venezuela, the U.S. populace may as well have been singing "Kumbaya" two years ago. On Sunday, Dec. 3, citizens in this South American country will decide whether to grant President Hugo Chávez another six years in office or replace him with the governor of Zulia state, Manuel Rosales.
Chávez—who has governed Venezuela since 1999—is favored to win, due to the strong following he commands among the poor, who make up about half of the population. That prospect has the country's middle class and wealthy residents breaking out in hives, not least because a landslide victory could pave the way for decades of chavista governance: The president has said he will eventually propose a referendum that would allow for unlimited re-election. One sign of how little the two camps mingle is that every Chávez and Rosales supporter I've spoken with here swears their candidate will come out ahead on Sunday (although Rosales boosters contend that Chávez will resort to fraud before he gives up his office).
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