Venezuela is holding its first election since a major consolidation of power by Mr. Maduro in July. The president has put so much authority into the hands of his supporters that most of his neighbors in Latin American now call his government a dictatorship.
His administration stands accused of altering the results of the last election, which installed an all-powerful body that rules the country virtually unchecked.
The new entity has stripped the opposition-controlled Legislature of power, opened a committee to investigate treason charges against opponents and aims to rewrite the Constitution.
And the street protests that have rocked Venezuela for months this year, leaving at least 120 dead, have largely dissolved, leaving few outlets of opposition to the country’s ruling socialist party.
“What we are living is no longer a democracy,” said Mr. Feo la Cruz. But he added that he still saw a chance on Sunday to “convert it back into a democracy.”
Many experts are not as optimistic. Luis Vicente León, who heads Datanálasis, a Venezuelan polling firm whose numbers show wide support for the president’s rivals, says opposition politicians may sweep the statehouses, only to find themselves powerless once they enter them.
