Tibisay Lucena, former president of the Electoral Power and prominent figure of Chavismo in Venezuela, dies

First modification: 04/12/2023 – 21:02

The death of Tibisay Lucena, a notable figure in Venezuelan political life, was announced on Twitter by the vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, who described her as a “distinguished daughter of Venezuela.”

After the announcement of the death, several members of the Government expressed their condolences and remembered Lucena.

“Tibisay Lucena was a woman of great temper who remained loyal to her principles and ideals, always defending the just causes of the people. Venezuelans will always remember her for her integrity and moral strength,” said President Nicolás Maduro, also on Twitter.

The head of state added that the minister was a “defender of democracy and education”, for which, he assured, his death causes him “great sadness”.

For his part, the Minister of the Interior and Justice, Remigio Ceballos, assured that the official “provided immense contributions to the Venezuelan State and to the entire people, contributing to the life and peace of the country.”

“There was no woman in the world who faced, with so much courage and intelligence, the political challenges that she had to live and overcome,” said the Minister of Agriculture, Wilmar Castro.

Born in 1959 in Barquisimeto, Tibisay Lucena graduated from the Central University of Venezuela, where she also worked as a professor in the area of ​​Electoral Processes.

Defender of democracy for some, employee paid by Chavismo for others

She joined the CNE in 2006, where she was the first woman to hold the position of president. As head of the electoral entity, she led 18 national and local elections, some of which were contested by the opposition and the international community.

Despite the criticism, Lucena has always maintained that the National Electoral Council is independent and impartial and that the elections it oversaw were transparent.

Patriotic and defender of democracy for some, but her legacy remains controversial for others. In 2018, she oversaw Venezuela’s disputed presidential election, boycotted by the opposition and widely considered fraudulent by the international community. Those votes led to a political crisis that led the opponent, Juan Guaidó, to proclaim himself interim president of the country.

Lucena had also been criticized for her management of the vote for a National Constituent Assembly in 2017, which was widely seen as an attempt by President Maduro to reinforce his power and neutralize the National Assembly, controlled at the time by the opposition.

Despite these criticisms, Tibisay Lucena continues to be widely recognized in her country, particularly for her defense of education.

In 2021, she was appointed Minister of University Education, a position she held until her death. She worked to renew the infrastructure of public universities, which had suffered the consequences of the economic crisis in the country.

with EFE