One month ago, Henrique Capriles was Venezuela's undisputed opposition leader, espousing a vision of dialogue and measured dissent towards the socialist government, according to the Associated Press.
Now, Leopoldo Lopez, a U.S.-educated economist who leads a radical wing of the opposition, defied Capriles' moderate approach to organize street resistance against Maduro - and has been jailed for leading the protests, the AP reported.
That has made him a 'martyr' for some in the opposition and wrong-footed Capriles, who backs the protesters' grievances but not their tactics as he seeks to preserve his own standing as the main anti-Maduro figurehead, according to the AP.
Capriles, 41, acknowledges tension within the opposition and is frustrated by Lopez but insists the main battle is against Maduro, who succeeded late socialist leader Hugo Chavez by being Capriles in an election last April, the AP reported.
Focusing on the Capriles-Lopez split in the opposition would not only play into Maduro's hands but is also irrelevant given Venezuelans' grave day-to-day problems, according to the AP.
"It's a false dilemma people are trying to create in the heart of the opposition. To try and turn the opposition debate into who is the leader makes a mockery of the historic moment the nation is going through," Capriles said, the AP reported. "I've not fallen into this trap and I tell my followers that's not the problem. If the discussion centers on that, you can be sure that Maduro will escape intact."
A wiry and sports-loving lawyer from a well-to-do family, Capriles trounced other opposition aspirants in a 2012 primary to face a cancer-stricken Chavez, according to the AP.
Although he fell short in the election later that year, he won the largest opposition vote ever against Chavez, 44 percent, the AP reported.
He then ran again last April after the socialist leader's death, losing by just 1.5 percentage points to Maduro in an election the opposition still says was rigged, according to the AP.
While Capriles retreated to his Miranda state governorship, Lopez and another radical opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado, urged opposition supporters onto the streets under the banner of "The Exit", meaning Maduro's departure, the AP reported.
Despite Capriles' disapproval of that tactic, sporadic protests began in the provinces and mushroomed after a large February 12 march in Caracas when three people were shot dead, according to the AP.
