Posted on Thu, Feb. 26, 2004
Anti-Chávez drive hits big obstacle
A national elections board finds problems with signatures on thousands of petition forms in the campaign to remove Venezuela's president from office.
BY FRANCES ROBLES
frobles@herald.com
CARACAS - Dealing a serious blow to an opposition drive to oust President Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's elections board ruled that more than one million people who signed petitions demanding a recall referendum will have to confirm their signatures.
The country's umbrella opposition organization, Democratic Coordinator, denounced the decision as unconstitutional and said it would no longer recognize the authority of the National Electoral Council, known as CNE.
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The action by the CNE was the latest -- and some say worst -- obstacle so far in the quest to drive out Chávez through a recall referendum.
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''The OAS and The Carter Center consider the concern legitimate in that it is necessary to determine whether one person signed for another, clearly violating the rules,'' the organizations wrote in a statement.
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http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/8043766.htm