Hugo Chavez could succeed Fidel Castro as most enduring leader

The populist strongman, who has said he wishes to rule until 2049, secured an amendment to the constitution that lifts a two-term limit and ensures he will be able to continue his "socialist revolution" for as long as he retains the support of the electorate.

Immediately after the result of Sunday's vote was announced, Mr Chavez, 54, a former paratrooper colonel and leader of a failed coup, declared himself a candidate for the presidency in 2012, when his current term ends.

Shouting from the balcony of the Miraflores presidential palace in the capital, Caracas, he told tens of thousands of his supporters: "This soldier is a pre-candidate for the presidency for 2013 to 2019. We have cleared the political horizon.

"The doors of the future are wide open. Today I declare that I dedicate, and will dedicate, my life to the service of the Venezuelan people.

"In this path I will dedicate all that remains of my life."

Mr Chavez said that the first foreign leader to ring and congratulate him was his political mentor, Fidel Castro, whose political longevity, with almost 50 years as head of state in Cuba until his resignation on health grounds in 2007, is what the Venezuelan leading is seeking to emulate.

He said that the Cuban leader had told him: "Dear Hugo, congratulations to you and your people for a victory of such magnitude that it is impossible to measure."

Mr Chavez's victory, in which he won a better-than-expected 54 per cent of the vote, allows for an amendment to the 1999 constitution, which Mr Chavez drew up, which limited presidents to two six-year terms in office.

Other elected officials including mayors, governors and members of parliament are also affected by the amendment.

The opposition conceded defeat, although insisted that it had not been a fair contest with the government using state funds on an unprecedented scale to secure a "yes" vote, while also controlling most of the media.

Leopoldo Lopez, one of the opposition's most charismatic leaders, said that it had been a David and Goliath contest and that Goliath had won.

The student movement, which has led street protests against Mr Chavez insisting he wants to turn himself into a dictator, also recognised the results.

"We accept the results, but must denounce the opportunism and the abuse of power by the government," said David Smolansky, a student leader.

Monitors said that the elections were fair, although over 150 people were arrested across the country, accused of destroying election material, fraud and trying to vote several times.

Whilst Mr Chavez has achieved his goal of opening the path to indefinite re-election, there is no guarantee that he will find himself in a strong position in 2012.

Venezuela, a member of Opec, is almost wholly dependent on oil sales, which make up more than 90 per cent of exports and half of the government budget. But Mr Chavez is running the country at a loss and has had to plunder an estimated $12 billion (£8.36 billion) from the Central Bank's foreign reserves, in order to finance his lavish referendum campaign at a time when Venezuela's super heavy crude is fetching less than $40 a barrel.

Critics in the pro-business opposition complain that his largesse in foreign policy, with subsidised oil shipments to allied countries, has been matched in extravagance by his domestic policy, with its social programmes and job creation for his supporters.

He has also scared away foreign investors by nationalising a number of foreign-owned private enterprises.

Washington had no immediate reaction to his victory. Mr Chavez, in power since 1998, set himself up as the regional nemesis to George W.Bush in Ameica's "back yard". However he has subdued his rhetoric with President Barak Obama, stating that he would be happy to meet the US leader to improve relations with Washington.