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.
Council of Ministers of Bolivia,or Cabinet of Bolivia,is part of the executive branch of the Bolivian government,consisting of the heads of the variable number of government ministries. The Council of Ministers are ministers of state and conduct the day-to-day business of public administration within Bolivia. The President of Bolivia may freely reorganize the executive branch,with the most recent comprehensive reorganization occurring in February 2009. Since then,the Ministry for the Legal Defense of the State has become the independent office of Solicitor General,and the Ministry of Communication has been created.
The Ministry of Cultures,Decolonization,and Depatriarchalization is the ministry of the government of Bolivia that provides for the preservation and protection of the cultures and artistic expressions of the indigenous peoples of Bolivia as well as promotes the country's tourism sector and process of decolonization and depatriarchalization.
Luis Alberto Arce Catacora,often referred to as Lucho,is a Bolivian banker,economist,and politician serving as the 67th president of Bolivia since 2020. A member of the Movement for Socialism,he previously served as minister of finance —later minister of economy and public finance—from 2006 to 2017 and in 2019.
Alejandro Oscar Finocchiaro is an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as Minister of Education,Culture,Science and Technology of Argentina. Previously he was general director of Culture and Education of the province of Buenos Aires and Secretary of Educational Policies and Teaching Career in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires. Since 2021,he has been a National Deputy elected in Buenos Aires Province.
Marianela Paco Durán is a Bolivian journalist,lawyer,and politician who served as minister of communication from 2015 to 2017. A member of the Movement for Socialism,she previously served as a plurinominal member of the Chamber of Deputies from Chuquisaca from 2010 to 2015.
Jeanine Áñez Chávez is a Bolivian lawyer,politician,and former television presenter who served as the 66th president of Bolivia from 2019 to 2020. A former member of the Social Democratic Movement,she previously served two terms as senator for Beni from 2015 to 2019 on behalf of the Democratic Unity coalition and from 2010 to 2014 on behalf of the National Convergence alliance. During this time,she served as second vice president of the Senate from 2015 to 2016 and in 2019 and,briefly,was president of the Senate,also in 2019. Before that,she served as a uninominal member of the Constituent Assembly from Beni,representing circumscription 61 from 2006 to 2007 on behalf of the Social Democratic Power alliance.
Mónica Eva Copa Murga is a Bolivian former student leader,politician,and social worker serving as mayor of El Alto since 2021. As a member of the Movement for Socialism (MAS),she previously served as senator for La Paz from 2015 to 2020,during which time she was president of the Senate from 2019 to 2020.
Arturo Carlos Murillo Prijic is a Bolivian businessman,hotelier,and politician who served as minister of government from 2019 to 2020. As a member of the National Unity Front,he previously served as senator for Cochabamba from 2015 to 2019 and as a plurinominal member of the Chamber of Deputies from Cochabamba from 2006 to 2010.
María Nela Prada Tejada is a Bolivian diplomat and politician serving as the minister of the presidency since 2020. A member of the Movement for Socialism,she served as chief of staff under Luis Arce during his tenure as minister of economy from 2006 to 2017 and in 2019.
Luis Fernando López Julio is a Bolivian businessman,retired military officer,and politician who served as minister of defense from 2019 to 2020. Appointed in the tail end of the 2019 political crisis,López,along with Minister of Government Arturo Murillo,quickly became characterized as the "strong men" of the Jeanine Áñez administration and were implicated in the deadly events at Senkata and Sacaba. López was called to hearings by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly but failed to present himself three consecutive times,ultimately resulting in his censure by the legislature. As per the terms of the Constitution,he was dismissed as minister but,exploiting a loophole in the document's text,he was reappointed just a day later. Soon after,reports revealed his participation in the tear gas case,which accused the ministries of government and defense of irregularly purchasing non-lethal weapons at inflated prices.
Fernando Iván Vásquez Arnez is a Bolivian geotechnical and mining engineer and politician who served as minister of mining and metallurgy from 8 May to 30 May 2020. He previously served as vice minister of productive development and metallurgical mining from 2019 to 2020 and as director of the environment and public consultation from 2006 to 2011. Shortly into his term,Vásquez stated that his white complexion made him incapable of begin a member of the Movement for Socialism,causing broad condemnation and his removal from office less than a month after being appointed.
The Arce Cabinet constitutes the 222nd cabinet of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. It was formed on 9 November 2020,one day after Luis Arce was sworn in as the 67th president of Bolivia following the 2020 general election,succeeding the Áñez Cabinet. The cabinet is composed entirely of members of the ruling Movement for Socialism. Described as a "technocratic" cabinet,it has been noted for the low-profile and youth of some of its members as well as its political distance from former president Evo Morales.
Adrián Rubén Quelca Tarqui is a Bolivian professor,politician,and trade unionist who served as minister of education from 2020 to 2021. A member of the Communist Party,Quelca worked to implement a project for a "semi-present" school system in which partial in-person learning would be coupled with radio and tele-education. Under his management,schools previously closed early by the past administration were reopened to blended learning for the 2021 year. Despite initial hopes for fully in-person classes by the second half of the year,results never panned out and his administration was hampered by an ongoing corruption investigation that ultimately culminated in the presentation of charges and his resignation on 12 November 2021.
Cielo Jazmín Veizaga Arteaga is a Bolivian footballer and politician serving as vice minister of sports since 17 December 2020. Veizaga's speedy rise to fame,joining the country's U20 team at age fourteen and becoming the youngest member of President Luis Arce's administration at nineteen has been met with acclaim despite accusations of inexperience in her State portfolio.
The 2021 El Alto municipal election was held on Sunday,7 March 2021,to elect the mayor and eleven councillors to the El Alto Municipal Council. Incumbent Mayor Soledad Chapetón was eligible to seek a second term but declined for personal reasons. Fourteen fronts presented candidates. In the election,Eva Copa of the Jallalla La Paz civic group handily defeated Movement for Socialism nominee Zacarías Maquera and thirteen other candidates with 68.70% of the vote to become El Alto's mayor.
Iris Alexsandra Flores Quispe is a Bolivian politician and university student serving as president of the El Alto Municipal Council since 2021. A member of Jallalla La Paz,she gained notoriety for being among the youngest authorities in the country,assuming the presidency of Bolivia's second most populous municipality at just twenty years of age.
The following is a list of events in the year 2022 in Bolivia.
Santos Quispe Quispe,commonly known as Wayna Mallku,is a Bolivian doctor and politician serving as governor of La Paz since 2021. A member of Forward United People,of which he is the leader,Quispe was a relative unknown in politics until he replaced his late father,the renowned peasant leader Felipe Quispe,as Jallalla La Paz's candidate for the governorship of the La Paz Department. Shortly after winning the election,Quispe terminated his party's pact with Jallalla,establishing a confrontational attitude with the Departmental Assembly for the duration of his term. In early 2022,he was sentenced to house arrest with the right to work after being discovered allegedly intoxicated at his office.
The 2022 Bolivian Ombudsman election will take place in mid-2022 during the 3rd Plurinational Legislative Assembly of Bolivia. This election for an ombudsman to head the Ombudsman's Office was necessitated by the resignation of David Tezanos Pinto on 24 January 2019,leaving Nadia Cruz as the acting authority for more than three years. This will be the sixth ombudsman election since the office was created in 1997.
