by James Petras
Two elections in Latin America this fall will have decisive importance in the direction of economic and foreign policy for the coming decade. Venezuelan legislative elections on September 26 will determine whether President Chavez can secure the two-thirds majority needed to proceed with his democratic socialist agenda without the procedural obstructionism of an increasingly hardline Right. Brazil the most powerful and dynamic industrial and agro-export economy in the region, faces Presidential elections on October 3rd.