Over the past ten years, Venezuela has seen a brain drain of unprecedented proportions, as eight million people have left the South American country — about a quarter of its entire population.

Suffering from a severe food crisis, hyperinflation, and a massive loss of skilled workers, Venezuela's economic and humanitarian crises are mainly the result of failed economic policies under socialist President Nicolas Maduro and his firebrand predecessor Hugo Chavez. The situation has worsened amid sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe on the two leaders for their political repression and human rights violations.

Sunday's presidential elections is pitting incumbent President Maduro against opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzales. A former diplomat, Gonzales belongs to the "Plataforma Unitaria Democratica," a political alliance made up of civil society, trade unions, retired military personnel, and former deputies of the National Assembly.

Gonzales has vowed to curb "Chavismo," or Chavism in English, which is a kind of left-wing populist ideology introduced by Chavez that advocates nationalization, social welfare programs and opposition to neoliberal economic policies such as those pursued by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The election will not only determine the future of politics but also whether the........

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