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Bolivia's last-minute electoral law (some details)

April 10, 2009
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Some details of the new electoral law (which still needs to be voted on en detalle; it was only passed en grande) have come out: The number of special/reserved indigenous seats is reduced to eight. Nearly 30% of the voter rolls will be revised between May-September (an opposition demand). Bolivians living abroad will be allowed to vote—and the CNE will provide funds for presidential campaigns to campaign in foreign countries for 10 days. Incumbents will not be required to resign three months prior to an election (this had been a bizarre Bolivian tradition).

Additionally, there will be autonomy referendums in La Paz, Oruro, Chuquisaca, Potosí, and Cochabamba. That same day, there will be elections to department legislatures. (So clearly everyone seems to assume autonomy will pass everywhere.) There will also be an autonomy referendum in the Chaco region (which has five municipalities in Tarija, Chuquisaca, and Santa Cruz). At the municipal levels, indigenous communities will get only one seat (added to the total of seats available) if they are a minority group.

There are a number of additional stipulations, including some quirky ones. For example, the presidential mandate for the new president & other elected officials will be considered as starting on August 6, 2010. Essentially, this will bring the electoral calendar back into synch: since 1985, Bolivian presidents (except for Evo Morales) have been inaugurated on August 6 (Bolivian independence day).

Overall, everything looks quite reasonable. The vice president, Alvaro García Linera, promises that the government will honor the compromises it made w/ the opposition when it comes time to vote on the law en detalle (article by article). If he doesn’t, things will fall apart again. If he does, then everyone will start getting into campaign gear.

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Comments

Looks like the autonomy referendum will be in the Gran Chaco province of Tarija, not in the whole Chaco region. There is some concern about the integrity of the Department of Tarija and that other provinces in other departments may claim similar autonomy in the future. See http://www.eldeber.com.bo/vernotaahora.php?id=090415002610
and April 15 El Pais
http://www.elpaisonline.com/local.html

Posted by John April 15, 2009 9:58 AM

    @John: Thanks. Yes, it seems there were some changes made to the law once it was looked at "en detalle" by the legislature. Another interesting change is that the number of indigenous seats was further reduced to seven.

    Posted by mcentellas April 15, 2009 10:55 AM


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