Venezuelan voters reject Chavez plan
Venezuelan voters have narrowly defeated President Hugo Chavez's proposal to overhaul the constitution, officials announced Monday.
Voters rejected a package of 69 proposed amendments by a vote of 51 percent to 49 percent, the Election Commission said. The outcome was the first major electoral defeat in the nine years of Chavez's presidency, The New York Times said.
Opponents of the Chavez proposal celebrated the news, shooting fireworks into the air and honking car horns, the newspaper said.
Conceding defeat, Chavez called the outcome a "photo finish."
"I congratulate my adversaries for this victory," he said. "For now, we could not do it."
There were reports of limited violence at a polling site involving a former defense minister as he went to cast his ballot. Four people were said to have been hurt, Globovision TV reported Sunday.
Analysts predicted a close vote for the changes proposed by Chavez, who said he wants to remain president until 2050 when he would be 95 years old.
Critics of Chavez contend he is trying to turn his oil-rich country into a Cuba-style communist state.
Chavez told reporters during the weekend he would cut off oil supplies to the United States if Washington attempted to interfere with the referendum. // Copyright 2007 by United Press International
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