Evo Morales Insists on Primary Elections in Bolivia

Evo Morales Insists on Primary Elections in Bolivia

Former president Evo Morales (2006-2019) insisted on Sunday that primary elections be held in Bolivia, since the president Luis Arce announced a referendum this year along with judicial elections.

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At a meeting of political organizations and parties, promoted by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), held in early July, it was decided to prioritize judicial elections over primary elections, Therefore, a bill to suspend internal elections was sent, a document that is currently in the Senate and has not been approved.

“How the government tricked the Supreme Electoral Court… Ah, if so, it is also necessary to incorporate the primary, it is justified by what we will be eliminating the primary. The primary is the basis of party or political movement democracy”, said Morales on his Radio Kawsachum Coca program.

Con la propuesta de referéndum, el Gobierno se burla del @TSE, de los partidos políticos y de la Asamblea Legislativa. El Órgano Electoral pidió suspender las primarias para no contaminar las elecciones judiciales, indicando que no podían sobreponer dos procesos electorales.
Y…

— Evo Morales Ayma (@evoespueblo) August 8, 2024

With the referendum proposal, the Government is mocking the @TSE, the political parties and the Legislative Assembly. The Electoral Body requested that the primaries be suspended so as not to contaminate the judicial elections, indicating that they could not superimpose two electoral processes. And now it turns out that the Government is calling for a referendum on the same day as the judicial elections, thus discarding the agreements signed by themselves. There are so many contradictions and so little clarity that they only generate greater uncertainty and instability.

According to the former president, the reason for suspending the primary elections were economic reasons could not be two electoral acts this year, but with the announcement of Arce on the holding of the referendum on the same day as the judicial ones is evident “the deception” of the government to the TSE.

“The TSE calls this multi-party meeting, says ‘we prioritise judicial, suspending primary elections’. The majority approved… and now say ‘the referendum must be incorporated on the day of the elections to the Judiciary,” he said.

During his speech on the 199th anniversary of Bolivia’s independence, President Arce proposed a referendum to consult the population on subsidizing the internal cost of fuels, presidential re-election and distribution of parliamentary seats, The announcement was criticized by the opposition and by those who are close to Morales.

In addition, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) conducted the first test of the system for the transmission of preliminary election results (TREP) and lists two more for implementation in future elections.