He then brought to bear the full weight of Venezuela’s state against Mr. González’s campaign. His government jailed dozens of his campaign workers, sowed confusion in the voting process and denied the opposition access to mainstream media and advertising.

To win votes for Mr. Maduro, the ruling party bet on its time-tested maquinaria*, *the political machinery that for years has used the financial muscle of an oil state to bring supporters to the polls through a combination of handouts, coercion and appeals to loyalty.

After those failed, they just stole it.

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