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Bolivia

Monthly Event Reports

January 2024 | Protesters demand the resignation of Constitutional Court judges and the convening of judicial elections
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Supporters of former President Evo Morales blocked roads in different regions, including a major highway, demanding the resignation of Constitutional Court judges. They allege that the Court’s recent ruling, which disqualified Morales from running in the 2025 elections, was a judicial ‘coup’. Protesters also allege that the ruling was intended to pave the way for incumbent Luis Arce to run for re-election as the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) candidate, in exchange for the Executive’s support for the extension of judicial terms.   The ruling directly contradicts a prior 2017 judgment of the same Constitutional Court (albeit with different members).   Protesters further demanded that judicial elections, which have been delayed since last year, be convened.   Pressure from the economic losses generated by the roadblocks influenced members of the National Assembly to come to an agreement in early February, deciding that judicial elections should be convened for June. 

November 2023 | Electoral Tribunal annuls congress of MAS party
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Bolivia’s Electoral Tribunal (Tribunal Supremo Electoral, TSE) annulled the Movimiento Al Socialismo (MAS) party’s October Congress.  The party’s leadership was elected there and Evo Morales was chosen to be the candidate for the 2025 presidential election. The TSE ordered MAS to hold a new Congress.  The Congress revealed deep divisions within the party, as the country’s current President, Luis Arce, was expelled from MAS. Former President Morales’s criticism of Arce’s government, including accusations of corruption and ineffective policies against crime, have fuelled discord within the ruling party.  Disagreements over who should run for MAS in the 2025 presidential election add to the division. The inability of MAS congressmembers to act in a unified way has contributed to a stalemate in the National Assembly on a number of issues, including the delay of judicial elections originally scheduled for October.  Morales and his supporters have accused the TSE of being partial to Arce and have called for retraction of the decision. 

September 2023 | Evo Morales will run again for president
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Former President, Evo Morales, confirmed his intention to run for the presidency in 2025, as candidate of the ruling Movimiento Al Socialismo (MAS) party. Internal divisions have exacerbated as Morales accuses current President, Luis Arce (also of the MAS party and former minister under Morales), of orchestrating political attacks against him. Supporters of both politicians engaged in physical violence in August, during a congress of peasants’ union, and the party’s internal division has contributed to a standstill in Congress over issues such as judicial elections.  On 4 October, during MAS’s congress, the candidacy of Morales was confirmed, while President Luis Arce was expelled from the party. 

August 2023 | Congress faces impasse in judicial elections

An impasse in Congress has prevented the call for judicial elections in Bolivia, which means that incumbent officials serving on the Supreme Tribunal, Constitutional Tribunal, Agro-environmental Tribunal and Magistrate’s Council will remain in place for now.  Without the two thirds majority needed and amid internal divisions within the MAS party, movement remains stalled.  Critics of the 2017 amendment, which brought in the use of elections for judicial posts, consider it has not contributed to improving the legitimacy of the judicial branch, as low voter-turnout (as seen in previous elections) and corruption in the judiciary prevail. 

Explore past monthly event reports

GSoD Indices Data 2013-2022

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Basic Information

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Population Tooltip
11 832 940
System of government
Presidential system
Head of government
President Luis Arce (since 2020)
Head of government party
Movement for Socialism
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
Mixed-member Proportional System
Women in lower or single chamber
46.2%
Women in upper chamber
55.6%
Last legislative election
2020
Effective number of political parties Tooltip
2.46
Head of state
President Luis Arce
Selection process for head of state
Direct election (modified two-round)
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
05/11/2019
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
86.55%
Population Tooltip
11 832 940
System of government
Presidential system
Head of government
President Luis Arce (since 2020)
Head of government party
Movement for Socialism
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
Mixed-member Proportional System
Women in lower or single chamber
46.2%
Women in upper chamber
55.6%
Last legislative election
2020
Effective number of political parties Tooltip
2.46
Head of state
President Luis Arce
Selection process for head of state
Direct election (modified two-round)
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
05/11/2019
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
86.55%
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Human Rights Treaties

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State Party State party
Signatory Signatory
No Action No action
United Nations Human Right Treaties
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
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International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
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International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
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Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
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Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment
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Convention on the Rights of the Child
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International Convention on Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
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International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance 
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International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
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International Labour Organisation Treaties
Forced Labour Convention
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Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention
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Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention
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Equal Remuneration Convention
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Abolition of Forced Labour Convention
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Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention
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Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment
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Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
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Regional Treaties
American Convention on Human Rights
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Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
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Performance by category over the last 6 months

Representation neutral Representation
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024
Representation neutral Rights
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024
Representation neutral Rule of law
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2024
Representation neutral Participation
Sep 2023
Oct
Nov
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Feb 2024

Global State of Democracy Indices

Hover over the trend lines to see the exact data points across the years

Explore the indices
Representation
Representation
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Rights
Rights
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Rule of Law
Rule of Law
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Participation
Participation
0
/1
high 0.7-1.0
mid 0.4-0.7
low 0.0-0.4
Annual value

Factors of Democratic Performance Over Time

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