By Resumen Latinoamericano on October 19, 2025
Bolivia’s president-elect, right wing Rodrigo Paz
The pro-US right-wing candidate, Rodrigo Paz Pereira, of the Christian Democratic Party (PDC), won on Sunday, October 19, in the second round of the presidential elections, ending almost two decades of Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) governments.
The Preliminary Election Results System (Sirepre) of Bolivia’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal showed that Paz won 54.53% of the popular vote, equivalent to 3,337,031 votes, with 97% of the ballots counted.
For his part, right-wing candidate Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga of the Free Alliance obtained 45.5 percent of the votes, losing his fourth bid for the presidency of the Plurinational State of Bolivia.
At a press conference, TSE President Óscar Hassenteufel said that the trend “appears to be irreversible” and added that turnout was between 85% and 89% of the more than 7.9 million Bolivians eligible to vote.
His victory opens the doors of the presidency to the political right, which returns to power after two decades of change led by the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), with the presidencies of Evo Morales (2006-2019) and Luis Arce Catacora (2020-2025).
Faced with this new scenario, social and indigenous movements in the country are preparing to begin a new phase of resistance in defense of the social achievements made and national sovereignty.
This was the first time that the runoff mechanism, established in the 2009 Constitution of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, was used, after none of the candidates obtained a sufficient percentage to win in the first round on August 17.
More than 7.9 million Bolivians were eligible to vote in the runoff—a total of 7,567,207 in the country and 369,931 in 33 countries—on a day when more than 27,700 agents were deployed to ensure public order. They guarded the polling stations and electoral materials.
Bolivia’s President-elect says he will Prioritize Private Property over Ideology
Paz thanked “the Bolivian family, the homeland, and God” for his victory and added that he will prioritize legal certainty and respect for private property over ideology.
“Ideology does not put food on the table. What puts food on the table is the right to work, what puts food on the table are strong institutions, what puts food on the table is legal certainty, respect for private property, what puts food on the table is certainty about your future. And that is what we want to work on,” he said.
.“We are going to pursue a close relationship with the US, one of the most important governments in the world, and will be part of the solutions so that from November 8 on, Bolivia will not lack its hydrocarbons.”
Bolivia’s president-elect, center-right Rodrigo Paz, said Sunday that the country is beginning to regain its place on the international stage “step by step” after 20 years of Movement Toward Socialism governments.
The 58-year-old economist won the second round of the presidential election with 54.6 percent of the vote against 45.4 percent for former president Jorge Quiroga, according to the official count with 97 percent of the votes counted.
“Bolivia is regaining, step by step, its international standing (…). We must open Bolivia to the world, to resume a role,” he told his supporters at a hotel in downtown La Paz.
He thanked “the Bolivian family, the homeland, and God” for his victory and added that he will prioritize legal certainty and respect for private property over ideology.
“Ideology does not put food on the table. What puts food on the table is the right to work, what puts food on the table are strong institutions, what puts food on the table is legal certainty, respect for private property, what puts food on the table is certainty about your future. And that is what we want to work on,” he said.
.“We are going to pursue a close relationship with the US, one of the most important governments in the world, and will be part of the solutions so that from November 8 on, Bolivia will not lack its hydrocarbons.”