Latest news with #PazPereira
Saudi Gazette
a day ago
- Business
- Saudi Gazette
Bolivia set to elect first non-left wing president in two decades
LA PAZ — Bolivia is set to elect a non-left wing president after nearly two decades of near-continuous rule by the incumbent socialist party, according to official preliminary results. Senator Rodrigo Paz Pereira and former president Jorge Quiroga came in first and second place respectively in Sunday's presidential elections. Neither received a high enough share of the vote to secure an outright win, so the vote will go to a run-off between these two candidates, due in October. Paz Pereira, of the Christian Democratic Party, was a surprise vote leader, after opinion polls had suggested Samuel Doria Medina, a businessman, was the frontrunner. The electoral authorities said it can take up to three days to finalise the results. Paz Pereira's campaign focused on redistributing more funds away from central government towards regional entities, and fighting corruption — with his slogan "capitalism for all, not just a few". He has suggested a programme of accessible credit, tax breaks to boost the formal economy, and eliminating import barriers for products that Bolivia doesn't manufacture. Quiroga briefly acted as interim president from 2001-2002 after serving as Vice President to Hugo Banzer, a military dictator until he was later elected. The election of a president from outside the left camp will likely see sharp changes in the Latin American country's foreign policy. In terms of trade, both candidate's capitalist stances could indicate more support for foreign investment in Bolivia's vast lithium reserves — the key ingredient for batteries used in many electric cars, laptops and solar panels. Politically, a change in government could mark closer ties with the US, after two decades of strengthening ties between Bolivia and China, Russia and Iran. A recent US Congress report briefing described US-Bolivia relations as "strained" under the socialist party's governance. The country's turn to the right comes as it is experiencing its worst economic crisis in years, with shortages of fuel, foreign reserves and some food items and high inflation and debt. Opinion polls ahead of the election suggested that many voters wanted to vote for change, or to punish the incumbent Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) party. The current president, Luis Arce, mired in deep unpopularity, decided not to seek re-election. The punishment of the left is not just electoral, but physical in some cases. The candidate for MAS, Eduardo del Castillo, was booed out of the school where he cast his vote. Bolivian media reported that some fellow voters told him to "wait in line like they do for fuel" rather than skip the voting queue. People also threw stones at the highest-polling left-wing candidate, Andrónico Rodríguez, when he went to cast his ballot. Rodríguez was previously a member of MAS before splintering from the party. Authorities in Bolivia also said that an explosive device was set off at the polling station where Rodríguez cast his vote. There were no reports of significant damage or injuries. Rodríguez described it as an "isolated incident" orchestrated by a "small group" to a Bolivian newspaper. The left has not just faced recent unpopularity over the economy. It is also deeply divided. For the first time in about two decades, the former president, Evo Morales, was not on the ballot. Morales ruled the country from 2006-2019 and was barred from running again, despite attempts to challenge legal and constitutional rulings to let him run for a fourth term. He has urged his supporters to null their vote. Rodríguez was once seen as a protégé of Morales, but has since distanced himself from him. The last election in 2019 was disputed and protests erupted. Morales was accused of fraud after auditors found irregularities with the poll and he resigned under pressure from the military. In 2020, Luis Arce — a former finance minister under Morales — took office as president. Morales then announced he would return to politics in Bolivia, and deprived Arce of a majority — turning the pair from allies to rivals. Deep rifts and power struggles have existed in the ruling MAS party ever since. Morales's supporters have held protests and roadblocks against the re-election ban imposed on him, which have at times turned deadly with some emergency responders being killed. Judges ordered an arrest warrant for Morales over an alleged sexual relationship and rape of a 15-year-old girl. He has called the accusations politically-motivated. He has been living and operating from Chapare in Bolivia, protected at times by his supporters. — BBC
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Bolivia set to elect first non-left wing president in two decades
Bolivia is set to elect a non-left wing president after nearly two decades of near-continuous rule by the incumbent socialist party, according to official preliminary results. Senator Rodrigo Paz Pereira and former president Jorge Quiroga came in first and second place respectively in Sunday's presidential elections. Neither received a high enough share of the vote to secure an outright win, so the vote will go to a run-off between these two candidates, due in October. Paz Pereira, of the Christian Democratic Party, was a surprise vote leader, after opinion polls had suggested Samuel Doria Medina, a businessman, was the frontrunner. The electoral authorities said it can take up to three days to finalise the results. Paz Pereira's campaign focused on redistributing more funds away from central government towards regional entities, and fighting corruption - with his slogan "capitalism for all, not just a few". He has suggested a programme of accessible credit, tax breaks to boost the formal economy, and eliminating import barriers for products that Bolivia doesn't manufacture. Quiroga briefly acted as interim president from 2001-2002 after serving as Vice President to Hugo Banzer, a military dictator until he was later elected. The election of a president from outside the left camp will likely see sharp changes in the Latin American country's foreign policy. In terms of trade, both candidate's capitalist stances could indicate more support for foreign investment in Bolivia's vast lithium reserves - the key ingredient for batteries used in many electric cars, laptops and solar panels. Politically, a change in government could mark closer ties with the US, after two decades of strengthening ties between Bolivia and China, Russia and Iran. A recent US Congress report briefing described US-Bolivia relations as "strained" under the socialist party's governance. The country's turn to the right comes as it is experiencing its worst economic crisis in years, with shortages of fuel, foreign reserves and some food items and high inflation and debt. Opinion polls ahead of the election suggested that many voters wanted to vote for change, or to punish the incumbent Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) party. The current president, Luis Arce, mired in deep unpopularity, decided not to seek re-election. The punishment of the left is not just electoral, but physical in some cases. The candidate for MAS, Eduardo del Castillo, was booed out of the school where he cast his vote. Bolivian media reported that some fellow voters told him to "wait in line like they do for fuel" rather than skip the voting queue. People also threw stones at the highest-polling left-wing candidate, Andrónico Rodríguez, when he went to cast his ballot. Rodríguez was previously a member of MAS before splintering from the party. Authorities in Bolivia also said that an explosive device was set off at the polling station where Rodríguez cast his vote. There were no reports of significant damage or injuries. Rodríguez described it as an "isolated incident" orchestrated by a "small group" to a Bolivian newspaper. The left has not just faced recent unpopularity over the economy. It is also deeply divided. For the first time in about two decades, the former president, Evo Morales, was not on the ballot. Morales ruled the country from 2006-2019 and was barred from running again, despite attempts to challenge legal and constitutional rulings to let him run for a fourth term. He has urged his supporters to null their vote. Rodríguez was once seen as a protégé of Morales, but has since distanced himself from him. The last election in 2019 was disputed and protests erupted. Morales was accused of fraud after auditors found irregularities with the poll and he resigned under pressure from the military. In 2020, Luis Arce - a former finance minister under Morales - took office as president. Morales then announced he would return to politics in Bolivia, and deprived Arce of a majority - turning the pair from allies to rivals. Deep rifts and power struggles have existed in the ruling MAS party ever since. Morales's supporters have held protests and roadblocks against the re-election ban imposed on him, which have at times turned deadly with some emergency responders being killed. Judges ordered an arrest warrant for Morales over an alleged sexual relationship and rape of a 15-year-old girl. He has called the accusations politically-motivated. He has been living and operating from Chapare in Bolivia, protected at times by his supporters.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Bolivia presidential election: preliminary results put two rightwing candidates in run-off vote
Bolivia's presidential election will go to a run-off for the first time, with two rightwing candidates competing for the presidency – marking the end of nearly 20 years of dominance by the leftist Movimiento al Socialismo (Mas). The candidate with the most votes, however, turned out to be a surprise: centre-right senator Rodrigo Paz Pereira, 57, who had started the campaign with just 3% support in opinion polls. In second came Jorge 'Tuto' Quiroga, 65, a rightwing former president who briefly led the country in 2001 after the resignation of ex-dictator Hugo Banzer. With just over 92% of ballots counted in the electoral court's 'preliminary' tally, Paz Pereira was on 32.1% and Quiroga on 26.9%. Quiroga said: 'It is a historic night – not for one party, not for one faction, not for one candidacy, but for all Bolivians who have spoken with strength, with faith, with hope and with dignity. Today, we have taken a giant step towards a better tomorrow.' The electoral court stressed that the figures are 'preliminary and not definitive'. That is because Bolivia uses two counts: a quicker one, based on photos of each ballot sent to a data-processing centre, and the slower definitive one, where every vote is publicly counted and scrutinised at polling stations before entering the system. The court has up to seven days to release the official results. As neither secured more than 50% of the vote, or at least 40% with a 10-point lead over the runner-up, a second round will be held on 19 October. Like the first round, the run-off campaign is expected to be dominated by the economic crisis – the worst in four decades – with shortages of dollars and fuel and rising inflation. Deeply unpopular president Luis Arce, of Mas, chose not to seek re-election and instead put forward his interior minister, 36-year-old Eduardo del Castillo, who won just 3.15% of the vote. It is a paltry share compared with the more than 50% that had secured first-round victories for Arce and former president Evo Morales in the past – but just enough for the party to avoid losing its legal status, as the threshold is set at 3%. According to the preliminary count, 19.1% of ballots were null and void – far above the historic average in Bolivian elections, which has typically been below 5%. Bolivia's first Indigenous leader, Morales had spent recent weeks urging his supporters to cast null and void votes in protest against rulings by the constitutional and electoral courts that blocked him from seeking a fourth term. Business tycoon Samuel Doria Medina, 66, who had led polls for much of the campaign, ended up third with 19.89% of the vote. Doria Medina acknowledged his defeat and announced that he would back Paz Pereira in the run-off. In the Bolivian press, analysts suggested one possible advantage for Paz Pereira was that the campaign battle in recent weeks had been concentrated between Quiroga, Doria Medina and the left, leaving the senator outside the main line of attacks – or even of fake news campaigns. Also, polls indicated there were still large numbers of undecided voters before election day. The highest-placed leftwing candidate was Senator Andrónico Rodríguez, 36, who left Mas to run with a small coalition. Having once polled as high as third, he eventually finished fourth with just over 8%. More than 2,500 national and international observers, from bodies including the European Union and the Organisation of American States, monitored the vote and were expected to publish their preliminary reports in the coming days. During the day, they said polling had proceeded normally. According to the electoral court, the election took place without problems, apart from some 'isolated incidents.' One of them involved Rodríguez. As he voted in Entre Ríos, a Morales stronghold about 50 miles from where the former president remains entrenched, the 36-year-old senator was booed and pelted with stones by what he described as 'a small group of extremists identified as supporters of Morales.' Rodríguez had to be escorted by a member of the armed forces to cast his vote. He was not injured. Once seen as Morales's natural heir due to his Indigenous roots and leadership in the coca growers' union, the senator was called a traitor for launching his own candidacy. Wanted on an arrest warrant since October for allegedly fathering a child with a 15-year-old, Morales voted in Villa 14 de Septiembre, about 25 miles from the tiny village where hundreds of coca growers have prevented police and the army from detaining the former president. Morales denies having committed any crime and claims the case is part of a plan by the current government to destroy him politically. President Arce, who served as Morales's finance minister before becoming his main rival, cast his vote in La Paz and said he would ensure 'an absolutely democratic transition' in November, when the next president is sworn in.
