International observers backed vote results showing a landslide win for Hugo Chavez, but a European Union delegation also said it received complaints that some government employees faced pressure to support the incumbent president.
The EU observers said in a preliminary report Tuesday that overall the vote was carried out smoothly and securely. The delegation noted a few areas of concern, including a high participation of public employees at Chavez's campaign events, unbalanced coverage in both state and private media, and a heavy use of government advertising by Chavez, and to a lesser degree opponent Manuel Rosales. |