Nicolás Maduro, the former bus driver turned president of Venezuela, is a miracle worker. Under his inspired reign, the economy of the country lost three-quarters of its output, yet he somehow managed to convince a majority of voters to grant him yet another term in office - his third.
President Maduro claims to have won Sunday’s election by securing 51% of the vote against the 44% that went to the opposition. He celebrated his dubious win with a grand fireworks display that lit up the sky over Caracas. Jubilant crowds were shown on national television as definitive proof that the nation looks forward to losing whatever has not yet been destroyed by Mr Maduro’s formidable incompetence at public administration.