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This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Bolivia |
Presidency |
General elections were held in Bolivia on 1 June 1997. [1] As no candidate for the presidency received over 50% of the vote, the National Congress was required to elect a President on 4 August. Hugo Banzer of Nationalist Democratic Action (ADN) was subsequently elected. Whilst the ADN emerged as the largest party in Congress, it failed to win a majority of seats, and formed a coalition government with the Revolutionary Left Movement, Conscience of Fatherland and the Civic Solidarity Union. [2]
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia is a landlocked country located in western-central South America. The capital is Sucre while the seat of government and financial center is located in La Paz. The largest city and principal industrial center is Santa Cruz de la Sierra, located on the Llanos Orientales a mostly flat region in the east of Bolivia.
The President of Bolivia officially known as the President of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is head of state and head of government of Bolivia. According to the current Constitution, the president is elected by popular vote to a five-year term, renewable once. In 2016, in a referendum the country voted to maintain term limits. Since 2009, if no candidate wins a majority, the top two candidates advance to a runoff election. Prior to 2009, if no candidate won half the popular vote, the president was chosen by a vote in a joint legislative session from among the top two candidates.
The Plurinational Legislative Assembly is the national legislature of Bolivia, placed in La Paz, the country's seat of government.
Economic and social issues dominated the campaign, with all major parties promising to continue the free market policies implemented by outgoing President Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada. Whilst Revolutionary Nationalist Movement leader Juan Carlos Duran emphasised the free market reforms, ADN leader Hugo Banzer promised to improve the lives of the indigenous population. [2]
In economics, a free market is a system in which the prices for goods and services are determined by the open market and by consumers. In a free market the laws and forces of supply and demand are free from any intervention by a government, or by other authority. Proponents of the concept of free market contrast it with a regulated market, in which a government intervenes in supply and demand through various methods — such as tariffs — used to restrict trade and to protect the local economy. In an idealized free-market economy, prices for goods and services are set freely by the forces of supply and demand and are allowed to reach their point of equilibrium without intervention by government policy.
Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada y Sánchez de Bustamante, familiarly known as "Goni", is a Bolivian politician and businessman, who served as President of Bolivia for two non-consecutive terms. He is a lifelong member of the Movimiento Nacionalista Revolucionario (MNR). As Minister of Planning in the government of President Víctor Paz Estenssoro, Sánchez de Lozada used "shock therapy" in 1985 to cut hyperinflation from an estimated 25,000% to a single digit within a period of less than 6 weeks.
The Revolutionary Nationalist Movement is a Bolivian political party and the leading force behind the Bolivian National Revolution. It influenced much of the country's history since 1941.
Party | Presidential candidate | Votes | % | Seats | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chamber | +/– | Senate | +/– | ||||
ADN–NFR–PDC | Hugo Banzer | 484,705 | 22.2 | 32 | – | 11 | – |
Revolutionary Nationalist Movement | Juan Carlos Durán | 396,235 | 18.2 | 26 | – | 5 | – |
CONDEPA–MP | Remedios Loza Alvarado | 373,528 | 17.1 | 19 | +6 | 3 | +2 |
Revolutionary Left Movement | Jaime Paz Zamora | 365,005 | 16.7 | 23 | – | 6 | – |
Civic Solidarity Union | Ivo Kuljis | 350,728 | 16.1 | 21 | +1 | 2 | +1 |
United Left | Alejandro Véliz Lazo | 80,806 | 3.7 | 4 | +4 | 0 | 0 |
Free Bolivia Movement | Miguel Urioste | 67,244 | 3.0 | 5 | –2 | 0 | 0 |
Socialist Vanguard of Bolivia | Jerjes Justiniano Talavera | 30,212 | 1.4 | 0 | New | 0 | New |
Axis of Patriotic Accordance | Ramiro Barrenechea | 18,327 | 0.8 | 0 | –1 | 0 | 0 |
Bolivian Democratic Party | Eudoro Galindo | 10,381 | 0.5 | 0 | New | 0 | New |
Invalid/blank votes | 143,946 | – | – | – | – | – | |
Total | 2,321,117 | 100 | 130 | 0 | 27 | 0 | |
Registered votes/turnout | 3,252,501 | 71.4 | – | – | – | – | |
Source: Nohlen |
Hugo Banzer was supported by his ADN–NFR–PDC alliance, as well as the Revolutionary Left Movement, Conscience of Fatherland and the Civic Solidarity Union. His only opponent, Juan Carlos Durán, was only supported by his own Revolutionary Nationalist Movement party. The United Left and the Free Bolivia Movement did not support either candidate.
Nationalist Democratic Action is a right-wing political party in Bolivia led by Dr. Freddy Terrazas Salas. ADN was founded on March 23, 1979 by the military dictator Hugo Banzer after he stepped down from power. It later expanded to include the Revolutionary Left Party (PIR) and a faction of the Bolivian Socialist Falange (FSB). As leader of the ADN, Banzer ran in the 1979, 1980, 1985, 1989, 1993, and 1997 presidential elections. He obtained third place in 1979 and 1980, and won a plurality of the 1985 vote, but, since he did not attain the 50% necessary for direct election, Congress selected the chief executive. Its choice was the second-place finisher, Dr. Víctor Paz Estenssoro.
The New Republican Force is a center-right political party in Bolivia. It is mainly based in the department of Cochabamba.
The Christian Democratic Party is a progressive Christian-democratic political party in Bolivia.
Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
---|---|---|---|
Hugo Banzer | ADN–NFR–PDC | 118 | 79.7 |
Juan Carlos Durán | Revolutionary Nationalist Movement | 30 | 20.3 |
Invalid/blank votes | 0 | – | |
Total | 148 | 100 | |
Registered voters/turnout | 157 | 94.3 | |
Source: Centellas |
The politics of Bolivia takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the president is head of state, head of government and head of a diverse multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament. Both the Judiciary and the electoral branch are independent of the executive and the legislature. After the 2014 election, 53.1% of the seats in national parliament were held by women, a higher proportion of women than that of the population.
Hugo Banzer Suárez was a Bolivian politician, military general and President of Bolivia. He held the Bolivian presidency twice: from 1971 to 1978, as a dictator; and then again from 1997 to 2001, as constitutional President.
The Solidarity Civic Unity (UCS) is a political party in Bolivia. UCS was founded on 15 August 1989 by Max Fernández, and is currently led by his son, Johnny Fernández.
The Revolutionary Left Movement - New Majority is a social democratic political party in Bolivia. It was a member of the Socialist International.
The Revolutionary Party of the Nationalist Left was a left-wing political party in Bolivia. It was founded in 1963 by the labor leader Juan Lechín Oquendo and by Mario Torres Calleja and Edwin Moller in lesser roles. The PRIN seceded from the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement (MNR) in protest against Víctor Paz Estenssoro's decision to seek a third elected term as president in 1964, rather than permit then Vice-President Juan Lechín to have the MNR's presidential nomination.
The Bolivian Socialist Falange is a Bolivian political party established in 1937. Despite its leftist-sounding name, it was a far-right party drawing inspiration from fascism. It was the country's second-largest party between approximately 1954 and 1974. After that, its followers have tended to gravitate toward the government endorsed military candidacy of General Juan Pereda (1978) and, especially, toward the ADN party of former dictator Hugo Banzer. Its current status is unclear.
The history of Bolivia from 1964 to 1982 is a time of periodic instability under various military dictators. On November 4, 1964 power passed from the elected leader of the Bolivian National Revolution, Víctor Paz Estenssoro to a military junta under vice-president General René Barrientos. Barrientos was elected president in 1966, but died accidentally in a helicopter crash in 1969, leading to a coup in September 1969 by General Ovando, who was overthrown in October 1970 by General Rogelio Miranda who was overthrown a couple of days later by General J.J.Torres, who in turn was overthrown on August 1971 by Hugo Banzer Suárez. Banzer ruled for seven years, initially from 1971 to 1974 with the support of Estenssoro's Nationalist Revolutionary Movement. In 1974, impatient with schisms in the party, he replaced civilians with members of the armed forces and suspended political activities. The economy grew impressively during Banzer's presidency, but demands for greater political freedom undercut his support. He called elections in 1978 and Bolivia once again plunged into turmoil. Juan Pereda ruled for only four months in 1978, but his ascent to the presidency marked the beginning of an even more unstable period in Bolivian history, with nine civilian and military presidents in little over four years (1978–1982). 1982 marked the return to a democratically elected government, with Guido Vildoso as president.
The history of Bolivia since 1982 begins with the restorations of democracy after the rule of the military junta of 1982. Evo Morales has held the presidency since 2006. A new constitution was enacted in 2009. Bolivia's population has roughly doubled over this period, from 5 million in 1980 to 10 million as of 2012.
Municipal elections were held in Bolivia, on December 5, 1999, in all 311 municipalities across the country. The elections marked a milestone in the continuous deterioration of the political influence of the traditional parties. In 23 municipalities the mayors were elected through direct popular vote, in other municipalities the mayors were elected by the respective municipal council.
General elections were held in Bolivia on 7 May 1989. As no candidate for the presidency received over 50% of the vote, the National Congress was required to elect a President on 6 August. Although the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement had received the most votes, its candidate for President Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada was defeated by Jaime Paz Zamora of the Revolutionary Left Movement (MIR) in the Congressional vote, despite the MIR only finishing third in the public vote.
General elections were held in Bolivia on 6 June 1993. As no candidate for the presidency received over 50% of the vote, the National Congress was required to elect a President on 4 August. Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada of the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement–Revolutionary Liberation Movement Tupaq Katari alliance was subsequently elected unopposed.
General elections were held in Bolivia on 14 July 1985. As no candidate for the presidency received over 50% of the vote, the National Congress was required to elect a President on 4 August. Although Hugo Banzer of Nationalist Democratic Action received the most public votes, Congress elected Víctor Paz Estenssoro of the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement.
The Popular Christian Movement was a political party in Bolivia, de facto controlled by the military junta.
The Leftwing Revolutionary Nationalist Movement was a centre-left political party in Bolivia.
The Revolutionary Nationalist Movement–Julio was a pro-military political party in Bolivia.
The Bolivian National Congress 1993–1997 was elected on 6 June 1993.
The Bolivian National Congress 1997–2002 was elected on 1 June 1997.