La Paz: Bolivians went to the polls in an election that could end nearly 20 years of leftist governance under the Movimiento al Socialismo (Mas), amid the country’s deepest economic crisis in four decades.
The Mas party, which came to power with Evo Morales’s election in 2005, risks losing its legal status if it fails to reach the 3 percent vote threshold, according to electoral law. Recent polls suggest the party is struggling to meet this minimum.
President Luis Arce, a former finance minister under Morales, declined to seek re-election, citing unpopularity amid economic turmoil. Instead, he endorsed his 36-year-old minister of government, Eduardo del Castillo, who polls at just 2 percent.
Two right-wing candidates are virtually tied at the top: centre-right businessman and former planning minister Samuel Doria Medina, and former President Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga. A potential wildcard is Senator Andrónico Rodríguez, 36, a former Mas ally now running with the leftist coalition Alianza Popular.
En las #EleccionesGenerales2025 más de 7,9 millones de bolivian@s están habilitados para escoger 🗳️ a quien ocupará la Presidencia, la Asamblea Legislativa Plurinacional, y otras autoridades.
La Misión de la #OEAenBolivia continúa recorriendo el país observando los preparativos… pic.twitter.com/bxCfZDcos9
— OEA (@OEA_oficial) August 15, 2025
Evo Morales, facing an arrest warrant over allegations of fathering a child with a minor, has remained in a coca-growing region of central Bolivia since October, attempting to influence the election. Barred from running, he urged supporters to cast null votes, claiming it would constitute a symbolic victory if they outnumbered votes for the leading candidate.
The country’s economic situation, the worst since 1985 hyperinflation, dominated the campaign. Shortages of fuel and dollars, long queues, and soaring inflation have fueled voter discontent.
With approximately 7.9 million eligible voters, preliminary results are expected by 9 p.m. local time. If no candidate secures over 50 percent of the votes or 40 percent with a 10-point lead, then a runoff will be held on October 19.
President Arce affirmed he would respect the outcome if the opposition wins, while attributing much of Mas’s decline to Morales and his parliamentary allies.
