VOA常速英语2007年-Venezuelans Vote in Constitutional Referendum

By Brian Wagner
Caracas
02 December 2007

Venezuelans are casting ballots² on a controversial reform plan that would allow President Hugo Chavez to seek re-election indefinitely and extend his socialist³ policies.  Pro-Chavez government officials say that exit polls indicate voters approved constitutional changes; opposition⁴ groups say their own exit polling indicates referendum wound up in a statistical⁵ tie. In Caracas, VOA's Brian Wagner reports many voters turned out early to cast their votes on the proposed constitutional changes.

Lines of voters extended dozens of meters at some polling stations in the Venezuelan capital, where people began gathering⁶ before dawn.

Italian language instructor⁷ Andres Canu was one of the first to vote at a school in downtown Caracas. He said the four-hour wait to cast a ballot¹ was normal for his polling .

Voters are deciding on whether to approve a set of 69 constitutional changes proposed by President Chavez and lawmakers in the National Assembly earlier this year. Election officials have split the proposals into two blocks, asking people to vote yes or no on each set of reforms.

One set includes proposals that would end term limits on the presidency⁸, create new forms of community-owned property, and lower the voting age to 16. The other includes new rules to fight ethnic⁹, gender¹⁰ and political discrimination, enhance the government's power in states of emergency, and ease the requirements for impeaching¹¹ Supreme¹² Court justices.

Business operator Miriam Bedoya says she wishes election officials had broken down the voting blocks even further.

Bedoya says it would have been better to vote on each proposal, to choose the ones you agree with and reject those you do not. But she says with two blocks it is hard to decide.

Polling stations are set to close at six o'clock in Venezuela, and election officials expect to begin announcing results later in the evening.

1 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

2 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 statistical   

adj.统计的，统计学的

参考例句：

• He showed the price fluctuations in a statistical table.他用统计表显示价格的波动。
• They're making detailed statistical analysis.他们正在做具体的统计分析。

6 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

7 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

8 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

9 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

10 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

11 impeaching   

v.控告（某人）犯罪( impeach的现在分词 )；弹劾；对（某事物）怀疑；提出异议

参考例句：

12 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。