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Chavez wins another term | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela has won a third term in office, with a clear victory over his nearest rival. With most ballots counted in the presidential election, Mr Chavez had secured more than 60% of the vote, officials said. His main opposition rival, Manuel Rosales, has admitted defeat. Sunday's election saw a high turnout and the poll was monitored by hundreds of international observers. Mr Chavez has secured support from millions of poor Venezuelans by using oil wealth to boost social programmes. The president - an ally of Cuban leader Fidel Castro - won elections in 1998 and 2000. Oil influence After his win, President Chavez called his re-election a defeat for the George Bush administration in Washington. The left-wing president told a cheering crowd in the capital, Caracas, that the poll had been a triumph for his left-wing "Bolivarian" revolution. He said he would use his nation's oil wealth to expand social welfare programmes and challenge American influence in the region. Critics of President Chavez accuse him of concentrating power in his own hands and squandering Venezuela's resources. Street party Minutes after the preliminary results were announced, Mr Chavez appeared at the balcony of the presidential palace in Caracas. "Today a new era has started, with the expansion of the revolution," he told tens of thousands of jubilant people. In his concession speech, Mr Rosales said he would continue "fighting for democracy" in the streets if necessary. Mr Rosales, governor of the oil-rich western state of Zulia, argued in his campaign that the country's long-term interests lay in free-market policies and attracting foreign investment. The BBC's Greg Morsbach in Caracas says Mr Chavez has won a clear mandate for another six years. The president is now likely to set about reforming the Venezuelan constitution to remove any limits on how many times he can be re-elected, our correspondent adds. Late on Sunday Chavez supporters took to the streets to celebrate, letting off fireworks and playing pro-Chavez songs over loudspeakers. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Commonwealth targets climate change 
