Bolivian Leader Evo Morales Cleared to Run Again in 2019.

AutorGaudin, Andres

Even though the Constitution doesn't allow it, and a majority (51.3%) of voters in a 2016 referendum voted against it (NotiSur, March 11, 2016), Bolivian President Evo Morales now has permission to seek a fourth term in the 2019 elections.

The surprising decision came from the country's constitutional authority, the Tribunal Constitucional Plurinacional (TCP), which accepted arguments by the governing Movimiento al Socialismo (Movement Toward Socialism, MAS) party and dozens of civil society and labor groups to the effect that the plebiscite, on Feb. 21, 2016, was tainted by a "smear campaign" aimed at damaging the president's image and swaying voters to reject the reelection option.

The campaign, which included allegations that Morales had fathered and abandoned an illegitimate child (NotiSur, June 17, 2016), was shown to be part of an operation mounted by the opposition, press outlets, and foreign intelligence agencies. The TCP ruled, therefore, to repair the damage caused. It also argued in its Nov. 28 decision that "electing and being elected freely in elections is a human right ... that takes precedence over the Constitution's term limits." The ruling applies to all elected officials at the national, departmental, and municipal level, 4004 people in total.

The TCP ruling wasn't just unexpected, it was also quite inopportune, given that it came just four days before elections were held on Dec. 3 to choose 26 top-level judges (a process unique to Bolivia). Among those elected were members of the TCP itself. The opposition, which had fought the process, added the TCP decision to its lists of grievances, calling it a mockery of the popular will expressed in the Feb. 21 referendum, to paraphrase Samuel Doria Medina, a leading conservative figure and former presidential candidate.

Government opponents, making their voices heard with an active social media campaign, boycotted the Dec. 3 elections. In contrast, groups of experts sent from the Organization of American States (OAS), the Union of South American Nations (USAN), the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB), and the Union Interamericana de Organismos Electorales (Inter-American Union of Electoral Bodies, UNIORE) praised the process, highlighting the originality of the Bolivian model.

'Bolivian miracle'

As the political right was launching its campaign to discredit the judicial elections--nine judges for the Tribunal Supremo de Justicia (Supreme Court); nine for the TCP; five for...

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