Poll puts Chávez rival in lead ahead of October election

A new poll in Venezuela put opposition candidate Henrique Capriles in front of Hugo Chávez for the first time before the October…

A new poll in Venezuela put opposition candidate Henrique Capriles in front of Hugo Chávez for the first time before the October 7th election, contradicting most surveys that give the president a lead of more than 10 per cent.

The Consultores 21 poll showed Mr Capriles with 47.7 per cent compared to Mr Chávez with 45.9 per cent, overtaking the socialist leader since the group’s survey in June gave Mr Chávez a 3.4 per cent lead.

The poll, which was prepared for private clients and has a 3.2 per cent margin of error, was obtained by Reuters yesterday.

Polls are controversial in Venezuela, where both political camps accuse each other of commissioning biased surveys. – (Reuters)