President Hugo Chavez

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuela's Supreme Court ruled unanimously that cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez does not have to take the oath of office as scheduled Thursday to begin his fourth term as president, a finding that some legal experts assailed as unconstitutional. Supreme Court President Luisa Estela Morales said Wednesday that Chavez's absence is acceptable given that his service will be uninterrupted and therefore does not fall under constitutional guidelines that could have forced him to attend the swearing-in ceremony or relinquish power.

CARACAS, Venezuela - A group of constitutional law professors on Tuesday said President Hugo Chavez's absence from an oath-taking ceremony Thursday without a formal request for postponement for health reasons will make an extension of his mandate unconstitutional and a "usurpation of authority. " The law professors made their case on the same day that Vice President Nicolas Maduro confirmed widespread expectations that Chavez will not attend the inauguration because he is still recovering from Dec. 11 cancer surgery in Havana.

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Diosdado Cabello, a confidant and former army comrade of President Hugo Chavez, was reelected as National Assembly president Saturday, a key position that would make him the leader in any process to begin a new election to replace Chavez should the fiery socialist die or be deemed “permanently incapacitated. " Chavez has not been seen or heard from since he left Venezuela in early December for Cuba, where he underwent his fourth surgery to treat pelvic cancer.  In sporadic and thinly detailed medical updates, officials have said he has encountered postoperative complications including “respiratory insufficiency”  that have dimmed the chances of his being present for a Jan. 10 inauguration.

BOGOTA, Colombia - Venezuela's government, facing demands from opposition leaders to say whether ailing President Hugo Chavez expects to be sworn in Jan. 10, announced Thursday night that Chavez was suffering "respiratory deficiency" related to a severe lung infection. In a statement read before a national television audience, Communications and Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said Chavez had "encountered complications" after his fourth surgery in Havana in December to treat cancer first diagnosed in June 2011.

CARACAS - Former opposition presidential candidate Henrique Capriles appeared to have won reelection as governor of a key Venezuelan state Sunday, positioning himself for a possible presidential run if ailing President Hugo Chavez cannot take the oath of office for another term in January. But initial tallies showed Chavez allies taking all but two of the other 22 statehouses that were up for grabs. Analysts said the near-sweep was fueled by sympathy for the cancer-stricken leader, who is being treated in Cuba after his fourth surgery for pelvic cancer.

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez apparently won reelection by a convincing margin Sunday, with allegiance among poor voters to his socialist revolution trumping dissatisfaction with a stunted economy, rising crime and the increasing polarization of society. With 90% of votes counted, the National Electoral Council said Chavez, a 58-year-old former army colonel, won 54.4% of the vote, compared with challenger Henrique Capriles' 44.9%. Turnout was estimated to be as high as 80%, and there were few reports of violence or other problems.

CARACAS, Venezuela - Jesus Ramirez is taking no chances. He and his wife bought several pounds of fish and beef at the Mercal state-run grocery store in Caracas' Trinidad barrio the day before Sunday's presidential voting, just in case postelection chaos descends on the country. "The supermarkets are cleaned out of candles, batteries, bottled water, even prepaid telephone cards," said Ramirez, a real estate broker who lives in the blue-collar Catia barrio. "We're all stockpiling things in case they become scarce.

CARACAS, Venezuela - In choosing between incumbent Hugo Chavez and challenger Henrique Capriles in Sunday's presidential election, Venezuelans will weigh differing policies, sharply contrasting personal styles and a consideration that observers say may tip the balance among voters: the fear factor. For Capriles to win, many voters who lean in his direction will have to overcome fear that they will lose their jobs or benefits in the event of a government change, that there will be an increase in political violence if Chavez loses, or that the government somehow will find out they voted for Capriles and take retribution.

CARACAS, Venezuela - In a driving rainstorm before tens of thousands of flag-waving red-shirted supporters gathered in downtown Caracas, a drenched but buoyant President Hugo Chavez insisted that the "life of Venezuela" depended on his victory in Sunday's election. Chavez is seeking a third six-year term, on top of his first two years in office before the constitution was changed to allow longer periods in office. Nearly 19 million Venezuelans are eligible to vote in the election pitting Chavez against Henrique Capriles, the former Miranda state governor.