Bolivians on Sunday elected a pro-business center-right senator as their new president, ending two decades of socialist rule that left the South American nation deep in economic crisis.
With 97.8 percent of ballots counted, Rodrigo Paz had 54.6 percent of the vote to 45.4 percent for his rival, right-wing former interim president Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal said.
The news was greeted with joy, music and fireworks on the streets of La Paz.
Photo: Bloomberg
“We came to celebrate the victory with great hope of a new direction for Bolivia,” said Julio Andrey, a 40-year-old lawyer.
Paz, the 58-year-old son of a former president, has vowed a “capitalism for all” approach to economic reform, with decentralization, lower taxes and fiscal discipline mixed with continued social spending.
In his victory address, Paz said Bolivia was “reclaiming its place on the international stage.”
Photo: Reuters
Paz also said he had received a congratulatory message from US President Donald Trump, while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington “stands ready to partner with Bolivia on shared priorities.”
“After two decades of mismanagement, president-elect Paz’s election marks a transformative opportunity for both nations,” Rubio said.
Under former Bolivian president Evo Morales, the nation took a sharp turn to the left: nationalizing energy resources, breaking ties with Washington, and making alliances with China, Russia and fellow leftists in Cuba, Venezuela and elsewhere in Latin America.
After the results were announced, Paz’s vice presidential running mate, Edmand Lara, made a call for “unity and reconciliation” after a bitter campaign.
While Bolivia is enduring its worst economic crisis in decades, he promised improvements are on the horizon.
“We must ensure the supply of diesel and gasoline. People are suffering. We need to stabilize the prices of the basic food basket, and we must put an end to corruption,” he said.
Long lines for fuel have become a way of life in Bolivia, with US dollars in short supply and annual inflation of more than 20 percent.
In a first electoral round in August, crisis-weary voters snubbed the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) party founded by Morales.
Sunday’s election closes out an economic experiment marked by initial prosperity funded by Morales’ nationalization of natural gas reserves.
The boom was followed by bust, notably with critical shortages of fuel and foreign currency under outgoing Bolivian President Luis Arce.
“We hope the country improves,” said homemaker Maria Eugenia Penaranda, 56, bundled up against the cold as she cast her vote in La Paz, about 3,600m above sea level.
“We cannot make ends meet. There is a lot of suffering. Too much,” she said.
Successive governments underinvested in the country’s hydrocarbons sector, once the backbone of the economy.
Production plummeted and Bolivia almost depleted its US dollar reserves to sustain a universal subsidy for fuel that it can also no longer afford to import.
Analyst Daniela Osorio of the German Institute for Global and Area Studies told AFP that Bolivians’ patience was running out.
Once the election is over, she warned that “if the winner does not take measures to help the most vulnerable, this could lead to a social uprising.”
Morales said after the results were announced, the president-elect has urgent and “serious issues” to resolve, such as the fuel and dollar shortages.
Paz faces an uphill task, inheriting an economy in recession, according to the World Bank.
He had promised to maintain social programs while stabilizing the economy, but economists have said the two things are not possible at the same time.
“He has maintained a very calm, centrist tone... he has connected with people who want change, but not radical change,” political scientist Gabriela Keseberg said of Paz’s victory.
Paz on Sunday said that his governance style would be one of “consensus.”
He would not have a party majority in Congress, meaning he would need to make concessions to get laws passed.
Outside of Congress, the new president would also face stiff opposition from Morales, who remains popular — especially among indigenous Bolivians — but was constitutionally barred from seeking another term.
Quiroga on Sunday said his team would review the official results, but congratulated Paz on his victory nevertheless.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
Taiwan’s exports soared to an all-time high of US$61.8 billion last month, surging 49.7 percent from a year earlier, as the global frenzy for artificial intelligence (AI) applications and new consumer electronics powered shipments of high-tech goods, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. It was the first time exports had exceeded the US$60 billion mark, fueled by the global boom in AI development that has significantly boosted Taiwanese companies across the international supply chain, Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) told a media briefing. “There is a consensus among major AI players that the upcycle is still in its early stage,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday said that China using armed force against Taiwan could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, allowing the country to mobilize the Japanese armed forces under its security laws. Takaichi made the remarks during a parliamentary session while responding to a question about whether a "Taiwan contingency" involving a Chinese naval blockade would qualify as a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, according to a report by Japan’s Asahi Shimbun. "If warships are used and other armed actions are involved, I believe this could constitute a survival-threatening situation," Takaichi was quoted as saying in the report. Under Japan’s security legislation,
RSS