Bolivians headed to the polls Sunday in a election that will change the country’s trajectory after two decades of one-party rule by the leftist Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) party.
The choice they have before them pits two conservative capitalists — right-wing former President Jorge Quiroga and centrist Senator Rodrigo Paz — against one another.
has been crippled by a shortage of US dollars since 2023, resulting in the country’s worst economic crisis in decades — locking Bolivians out of their savings accounts and hampering imports.
Meanwhile, Bolivia’s currency, the Boliviano, has lost nearly half its value. Last month inflation hit 23% — its highest level since 1991.
What have Bolivia’s presidential hopefuls promised?
Both Quiroga and Paz have sought to sell themselves as candidates of change and promise to pivot the country away from two decades of populist economic policy.
The election comes after MAS, founded by , was voted out of government in an August 17 election.
The result was seen as an expression of voters’ frustration over party infighting as well as national fuel shortages.
Quiroga and Paz have both pledged to fix the exchange rate, restructure state-owned businesses and attract foreign investment.
Quiroga has proposed securing a quick loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) coupled with drastic spending cuts, reductions in the size of government and the privatization of industries the state is currently involved in.
Paz wants to avoid help from the IMF by tackling corruption and the country’s burgeoning black market while slowly phasing out things such as government fuel subsidies over time, rather than capping them immediately.
Economists say budget cannot be balanced if welfare programs stay
Both Quiroga and Paz say they want to maintain social welfare programs as they stabilize Bolivia’s economy, something economists say cannot be mastered in tandem.
Both also agree that ending fuel subsidies — which account for more than $2 billion (€1.72 billion) in government funding each year — is key to Bolivia’s economic survival.
But they will be both keenly aware of how difficult that will be, with citizens and trade unions already threatening unrest should either touch the fuel subsidies.
Though gas propelled Bolivia to great wealth in the early 2000s, exploration and production has since collapsed.
The will be to , the largest in the world.
Who are Bolivia’s presidential candidates?
The son of a former president, Paz, a relative unknown despite two decades in politics, surprised observers by winning the August election.
Although he beat Quiroga and all other contenders, he did not secure an outright majority, hence the run-off.
Much of Paz’s popularity in the vote can be traced back to his running mate, Edmand Lara, who lost his job with the police after a TikTok video of him railing against corruption went viral. Among those attracted to his message were working-class residents in the Bolivian highlands.
Paz and Lara barnstormed the country during their campaign, promising “capitalism for all” and painting themselves in contrast to wealthy Quiroga and his deep-pocketed donors.
What will the election mean for Bolivia’s alliances?
Both candidates have made overtures to the — a massive change after 20 years of anti-American MAS leadership — with each flying to Washington for meetings with President .
“Both candidates running in the runoff election want strong and better relations with the United States, so that’s another transformative opportunity,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday at a news conference as Trump welcomed Argentine President Javier Milei — a close ally — and later .
No matter who wins, Sunday’s election will initiate a seismic shift in alliances away from China and Russia, likely reverberating across the hemisphere economically and geopolitically.
Polls opened at 8:00 a.m. (1200 GMT) and will close at 4:00 p.m.
Voting in Sunday’s run-off is compulsory for the country’s 7.9 million eligible voters.
Edited by: Karl Sexton
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