Supporters of Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, took to the streets to celebrate his victory on Sunday in a poll on scrapping term limits [Reuters]
Published On 17 Feb 200917 Feb 2009
Hugo Chavez hailed the victory - he won with 54 per cent of the vote - and pledged to "open wide the gates of the future" [Reuters]
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Opposition supporters however were dismayed, and criticised Chavez for using state funds in his referendum campaign [EPA]
Venezuelans have voted in the fifth referendum since Hugo Chavez was first elected president in 1999 [AFP]
On Sunday voters were asked to choose "Yes" or "No" in a referendum to determine whether to scrap term limits for elected officials [AFP]
There was a festive mood on the streets of Caracas as some Chavez supporters began celebrating exit poll results in their favour [AFP]
More than 16 million Venezuelans were eligible to vote [AFP]
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The referendum marked Chavez's second attempt to remove the two-term cap for presidents. If approved, it would allow him to repeatedly seek re-election [AFP]
Chavez described winning the vote as key to completing his transformation of Venezuela into a socialist state [AFP]
Opponents had said a victory for Chavez in the referendum would remove the last remaining check on his power [Reuters]
