Journal of Democracy

Following Hugo Chávez’s election to the Venezuela’s presidency, where he remained from 1999 till his death of cancer in March 2013, the country went from being a representative, albeit flawed, democracy (1958–98) to being an “electoral authoritarian” or “competitive authoritarian” regime. But can the chavista model survive the demise of the strongman from whom it takes its name? By all appearances it has begun to break down with surprising speed since his death.