(CNN) -- He began his career as a bus driver in Caracas, then rose through the ranks to become a member of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's inner circle. Now, if Chavez's health worsens, Vice President Nicolas Maduro could be the one to take the reins. Chavez, who is battling cancer, said Saturday that Maduro should replace him "if something were to happen that would incapacitate me." "My firm opinion, as clear as the full moon -- irrevocable, absolute, total -- is ... that you elect Nicolas Maduro as president," Chavez said, waving a copy of the Venezuelan Constitution as he spoke. "I ask this of you from my heart. He is one of the young leaders with the greatest ability to continue, if I cannot."
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NEW: Analyst: Nicolas Maduro was behind radical foreign policy decisions, but also compromises
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Hugo Chavez says he wants Maduro to replace him if his health worsens
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Maduro, 50, is Venezuela's vice president and foreign minister
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He started his career as a bus driver, then later become a union leader and a politician
Polls have indicated that although @placeholder still has strong backing from his supporters, other possible successors don't seem to generate that kind of enthusiasm.