Anabel José González is sure the two-story building under construction as a government-subsidized supermarket will buy votes here in President Hugo Chávez's home town. ''The people think with their stomachs, not their heads. They believe the populism,'' González said as his beat-up jeep veered left on the outskirts of Sabaneta into Venezuela's agricultural heartland. But González does not plan to support Chávez's party in Sunday's election, amid fears over growing crime. ''There's a lot of insecurity here; injustice, delinquency, robbery,'' said González, a retired teacher, who said he will not vote for Chávez's brother Aníbal, who is running for a second term as town mayor.
Grocery stores selling discounted food are hallmarks of the Chávez government's social missions, and likely to score political points in Sabaneta when locals go to the polls to vote in the country's regional elections for mayors and governors. With inflation running at 30 percent in Venezuela this year, the highest in Latin America, making ends meet is not easy, he said. ''The cost of medicine, food, it's all gone up,'' said González, a father of two. ``This is not a revolution; it's an involution.''
In recent weeks, Chávez has rallied his PSUV (PartidoSocialista Unido de Venezuela) to win the regional elections and accelerate his 21st century socialism project. But analysts say his party -- which holds governorships in all but two of the 24 states -- has a tough fight ahead, in a climate of discontent over frequent power outages, a sharp rise in the cost of living, growing crime and allegations of political corruption.
Here in the southwestern state of Barinas, the Chávez family is geared up to keep its stronghold over the region. Not only is Hugo's brother Aníbal seeking reelection as Sabaneta mayor, his other sibling, Adán, is hoping to take over as state governor, a position already held by President Chávez's father.
Some consider Chávez more messiah than man, and he has whipped up a cult following, according to Sabaneta priest Luiz Edward Jaimes Toro. ''They heard confessions from people . . . who think Chávez has been sent by God,'' Toro said. State television channels often cancel regularly scheduled broadcasts to air live speeches by Chávez, which can last up to five hours. The leader also addresses the nation every Sunday in his Aló Presidente show, trumpeting the revolution and denouncing opposition figures that he says his party will crush in Sunday's elections. But euphoria over the charismatic Venezuelan leader and his family is waning, said Jusmaira López, 38, a restaurant owner in Sabaneta. ''There was a lot of fanaticism for Chávez, but there's less now; at least, that's what I see,'' she said. She won't be voting. ''I'm neither for nor against,'' she added.
In a plaza in the heart of Sabaneta named after Simón Bolívar, the president's revolutionary hero, a statue of the 19th century liberator stands elegantly on top of a concrete pedestal. An unidentified elderly man recently walked past and cursed Bolívar's modern-day disciple, Chávez. ''A terrorist. A devil,'' he said.
José Sande paused between serving customers in his bakery in Plaza Bolívar, and said he will probably give Aníbal Chávez his vote, but not because of any love for the current mayor. ''It's better we have him than people we don't know,'' said Sande, 43. ``You wouldn't know who they might send instead.'' Across town, business owner Arturo Pobes, 45, said the Chávez family candidates will get his support because of their social projects in the area, such as a state-subsidized canteen. ''The government has done a lot for the poor,'' he said. He's not put off by what he calls the anti-Chávez rhetoric coming from Washington, which, in the past, has accused the president of destabilizing the region. ``If a government is not a friend of the United States, they say they're communists; that they're bad.''
For Chávez, any opposition gain is the beginning of the end for his 21st century socialism project. ''If they win, first they will sabotage the government,'' he has said publicly. ``And after that, they will try to bring me down.''
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