The late Hugo Chavez's self-declared socialist revolution will be put to the test during a presidential election on Sunday that pits his chosen successor against a younger rival promising change in the nation.

Most opinion polls give his protege, acting President Nicolas Maduro, a strong lead over opposition challenger Henrique Capriles thanks to Chavez's endorsement and the surge of grief and sympathy over his death from cancer last month.

The candidates closed out official campaigning on Thursday with dueling rallies, both drawing hundreds of thousands of boisterous supporters.

Taking a page out of Chavez's playbook, a fiery Maduro marched through the streets of the capital draped in a Venezuelan flag and called on voters to follow "commander Chavez as the spiritual guide of the fatherland."

"I am the son of Chavez," the burly 50-year-old former bus driver shouted to supporters in downtown Caracas. "I am ready to be your president."

Capriles, an energetic 40-year-old state governor, wrapped up his second presidential campaign in seven months in the nearby city of Barquisimeto, pledging to end the divisive politics of the Chavez's 14-year rule.

"Those who govern today have never done anything for your security. Sunday we're going to choose between life and death," Capriles roared to the crowd. "If you want a future, you have to vote for change, for a different government."

At stake is control of the world's biggest crude oil reserves, economic aid to a host of left-leaning governments around Latin America, and the legacy of what Chavez liked to call "21st century socialism," a mix of hard-left politics, heavy government spending on the poor, and growing state control over the economy.

The presidential vote will be the first time that Chavez isn't on the ballot in two decades, but in many ways the election is all about him. Maduro has cast himself as Chavez's "first apostle."

Keenly aware of Chavez's cult-like following among the poor, Capriles has spent much of the campaign denying Maduro's claims that he would get rid of the oil-funded social spending that was the cornerstone of the late president's popularity.

He is also touting a Brazil-style model that blends pro-business policies with strong spending on social welfare projects, and he says Maduro's tenure as acting leader has only added to people's problems with a devaluation and new currency controls.

Reuters