Can Venezuela finally reap its oil riches after election?

Over the past 10 years, Venezuela has seen a brain drain of unprecedented proportions, as 8 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 election will Maduro against opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia. A former diplomat, Gonzalez 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.