For 14 years, Evo Morales lived in Bolivia’s presidential residence.
Now, finding him means a hilly, four-hour drive to a small town called Lauca Ñ then past a checkpoint and into a compound in the woods, where loyalists protect him from arrest.
A socialist, former activist and union leader, Mr. Morales became a towering figure as Bolivia’s first Indigenous president. Starting with his first term in 2006, he reshaped the political landscape by giving marginalized Bolivians a voice and pouring resources into social programs and public projects.
But Mr. Morales’s bid for a fourth term ended in a disputed election, unrest and a flight into temporary exile. Ahead of the first round of Bolivia’s presidential election on Sunday, he is overseeing a kind of phantom campaign despite being barred from running again by Bolivia’s courts that cited term limits.
He is also being sought for arrest, charged with human trafficking and accused of impregnating a 15-year-old girl when he was president. He has not denied the accusations or that he fathered a child with her. The charge has also not dampened his support among many Bolivians.
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