Venezuela's Capriles edges toward Chavez as vote nears -poll

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan opposition candidate Henrique Capriles edged closer to President Hugo Chavez in an opinion poll but remained 10 percentage points behind the socialist leader in the run-up to the October 7 election, according to two sources who have seen the poll.

Recent Datanalisis' polls show support for Capriles, a 40-year-old state governor, growing in the waning days of the campaign as he continues campaigning across the country.

Capriles' has vowed to create a Brazilian-style "modern left" that balances free enterprise with social welfare programs. Investors expect him to end a five-year nationalization crusade and reduce state intervention in the economy.

Chavez, who has been in office for 14 years, says he will deepen his oil-financed socialism if he wins another six-year term. That would likely feature continued confrontation with the private sector and efforts to support leftist allies in the region.

Capriles on Monday led a massive caravan in the sweltering state of Vargas, alongside the Caribbean Sea, waving to supporters from atop a truck. He at times narrowly averted being dragged to the ground by female fans trying to hug him.

"Let me tell you, someone who hasn't done what they were supposed to do in 14 years is not going to do it in the next six years," Capriles told supporters, who sang and danced to salsa in the spirit of Venezuela's political rallies, which often look more like street parties.

A group of about 100 Chavez supporters waited at the end of the caravan carrying signs that said "Get out thief" and throwing water bottles at Capriles. The confrontation fizzled without incident, in contrast to recent skirmishes at rallies that have left several people wounded.

POLLS DIVERGE

The Datanalisis' survey showed Capriles with 37.2 percent of the vote compared with 47.3 percent for Chavez, closer than the 12.5 percentage point difference registered in the last Datanalisis survey.

The poll, which had a margin of error of 2.4 percent, was conducted between August 25 and September 5, the sources said. Datanalisis did not immediately respond to requests for confirmation of the details.

Chavez, 58, leads the majority of the country's best-known polls but they are notoriously controversial and divergent in Venezuela. Capriles' numbers have been creeping up and another well-known pollster, Consultores 21, has the candidates neck-and-neck.

A close result could spark protests and possibly accusations of fraud. Chavez has repeatedly said the opposition will refuse to accept the results should it lose while the opposition says Chavez will try to avoid handing over power.

Chavez on Monday led a massive rally in the plains state of Portuguesa, singing to the crowd, grilling campaign volunteers on their get-out-the-vote efforts and leading supporters in chanting "Chavez will win on October 7."

He has appealed to working-class Venezuelans by playing up his humble roots in a small village of Venezuela's central plains where he once sold papaya candies and played baseball in dusty fields.

The government recently announced a book of stories about Chavez's youth, compiled by two Cuban reporters who searched YouTube for stories that the garrulous socialist has told during close to 14 years of Sunday talk-shows.

He appears to have largely recovered from a cancer diagnosed last year that for weeks left him almost completely out of the public spotlight. Capriles has displayed an image of youthful energy by traversing the country and walking through villages and slums to win over wavering Chavez supporters.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Enrique Andres Pretel and Bill Trott)

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