Photo courtesy of Flickr. Evo Morales resigned after over a decade in office this past October.
BY JOCELYN ZHOU ’22
Evo Morales, the president of Bolivia, won re-election in October 2019. However, after facing weeks of protests which began Oct. 21, he resigned.
Morales came to power more than a decade ago. He was elected in 2005 and was the first indigenous president. He was subsequently re-elected in 2009 and 2014.
According to The New York Times, Morales — the first indigenous president in a country where two-thirds of the population is indigenous — has been in power longer than any other current head of state in Latin America.
Disputes over transparency of the election led to weeks of protest in Bolivia, as Morales had a lead of over 10 percent points. According to The New York Times, election officials said Morales received slightly more votes than needed to avoid a runoff on Oct. 20. The protesters were concerned over the result and called for a new election.
Anti-Morales protesters demanded he step down, and the military supported the protesters. According to NPR, Presidency Minister Jerjes Justiniano said the protesters were armed with “military weapons.”
The protests soon turned violent. According to The New York Times, the rebellion spread to the military, with the commander of Bolivia’s armed forces, General Williams Kaliman, calling for Morales to step down.
“The armed forces had recently given the power to act without being held accountable for their acts, which can lead to an extension of repression,” Mount Holyoke Professor of Politics Cora Fernandez Anderson said.
Under pressure from the protests, Morales left Bolivia and took asylum in Mexico on Nov. 11, while the country remains in turmoil.
After his resignation, Jeanine Añez declared herself the interim president. As a response to Añez’s presidency, Morales’ supporters are currently calling for the return of Morales to oppose Añez, in fear of losing their standing among other religious and cultural groups.
“Morales expects a national dialogue to get out of this situation,” Anderson said. “At a minimum, it will be necessary to call for new elections in which all parties will be able to compete. If this does not happen, then we will have the consolidation of an authoritarian government that came to power through force with no democratic legitimacy.”
“The future is uncertain at this point,” Anderson said. “The current government is already responsible for the repression and death of at least 15 people, most of which were Morales supporters. At the same time with the fall of Morales, South America is now predominantly to the right, so most of the neighboring countries have recognized this new government and are invested in their success.”