Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Tuesday intensified his party's campaign for the legislative elections scheduled for Sept. 26.

He traveled to different regions in the day to attend massive public meetings to drum up support for the candidates of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela.

On Tuesday morning, Chavez visited Antimano, one of the 22 parishes in the capital, heading a caravan of thousands of followers to support the candidates of the ruling party running for the National Assembly (AN).

He also went to the state of Aragua in the north.

"This is a hurricane smelling to 2012," Chavez said referring to his aspirations to serve another presidential term.

Venezuela's legislative body is renewed every five years and the campaign for the elections this year began on Aug. 25.

"It is necessary to avoid the opposition taking power of the AN," Chavez said before traveling to Maracay, Aragua's capital in central Venezuela, 109 km from Caracas.

On Sept. 26, some 17.5 million Venezuelans are expected to vote in 12,562 polling centers across the country to choose 165 deputies to the AN and 12 to the Latin American Parliament, a regional consultative assembly formed by countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.