CARACAS -- (AP) -- Nationwide elections Sunday are for governors and
             members of congress, but Venezuelans also were deciding the political fortunes of
             a failed coup leader running for president on an anti-corruption, anti-establishment
             platform.

             Supported by millions of peasants and shantytown dwellers, a new movement led
             by Hugo Chavez, who took up arms against the government six years ago,
             appeared poised for a strong showing in Sunday's congressional vote. Chavez is
             also the front-runner to win the Dec. 6 presidential election.

             With Venezuelan politics taking on overtones of class warfare, officials feared an
             outbreak of violence. They deployed about 100,000 soldiers and police to ensure
             peaceful voting, expelled the local election board in the country's second-most
             populous state, and prohibited the sale of liquor and the carrying of weapons.

             President Rafael Caldera, whose army chief recently implied the armed forces
             would seek to block Chavez's rise to power, cast his ballot and declared the vote
             ``an expression of the will of the people.''

             In a country where fraud allegations often cloud elections, Caldera promised the
             results would be ``respected completely and in a transparent, clean and honest
             way.''

             About 11 million of Venezuela's 23 million residents are eligible to vote, and by
             midday Sunday, turnout looked strong.

             However, the voting was plagued by long lines and confusion over complicated
             ballots. Voting machines being used for the first time in Venezuela malfunctioned in
             many balloting stations.

             At 3 p.m. EST, when voting stations were supposed to close, election authorities
             announced on nationwide TV that the deadline would be extended for at least two
             hours because many people were still waiting to vote.

             ``The turnout has apparently been massive,'' Rafael Parra Perez, head of the
             national election council, told reporters. He said about 10 percent of the voting
             machines malfunctioned.

             Despite the surging popularity of Chavez's Patriotic Pole coalition, Venezuela's
             two oldest parties -- the center-left Democratic Action Party and the conservative
             Copei Party -- could benefit from well-greased political machines bringing out the
             vote Sunday for 23 governors, 48 senators, 189 members of congress and 391
             state assembly members.

             Patriotic Pole stands a good chance of winning the largest share of Venezuela's
             congress, which is currently dominated by Copei and Democratic Action.

             ``I am optimistic because the people are alert, with their eyes wide open,'' said
             Chavez as he voted Sunday amid shouts of ``Hugo! Hugo!''
 

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