This is the first major voting since last year’s presidential election, held just days after the arrest of dozens, including a top opposition leader, over an alleged plot to disrupt the poll

The election is the first to allow broad voter participation since last year`s presidential contest, which President Nicolás Maduro claimed to have won despite credible evidence to the contrary, according to the AP

It is taking place two days after the government detained dozens of people, including a prominent opposition leader, and linked them to an alleged plot to hinder the vote

About an hour after polls opened, around a dozen voters were outside the country`s largest voting centre, located in the capital a stark contrast with the hundreds who were already in line around the same time for the July 28 presidential election

An increased police presence was noticeable across Caracas, where squad cars with lights on dotted quiet neighbourhoods

Voter participation, in the eyes of the opposition, legitimises Maduro`s claim to power and his government`s repressive apparatus, which after the July presidential election detained more than 2,000 people, including protesters, poll workers, political activists and minors, to quash dissent, reported the AP