It's been satisfying to watch the left having its collective aneurysm over the rise of "right wing" parties in Europe. Not to mention a relief to see Javier Milei put libertarian economics into practice to rescue Argentina from the miasma of misery left by a few decades of socialist government.
It's hard to tell if Bolivia is latching onto the Milei change-wagon, or is having a belated reaction to the collapse of Venezuela under socialist Nicolas Maduro, or merely expressing disgust at its own misert after two decades of socialist mismanagement, but Bolivia - a long time punchline for everything that's wrong with government, sometimes called "The Minnesota of Latin America" [1], has ejected the Socialists from the final round of it's runoff election this past Sunday:
Huge news that no one is talking about out of the beautiful country of Bolivia.
— Joey Mannarino 🇺🇸 (@JoeyMannarinoUS) August 18, 2025
For the first time in two decades, the Socialist Party has just been VOTED OUT of power!
There will be a runoff election in October to determine who is the FINAL winner but the corrupt socialists…
And it wasn't even close; the current President, Luis Arce, was barred from running via court order; his "Movement for Socialim" party ran the enterior minister, who finished in the interior of the polling:
Centrist senator Rodrigo Paz secured 32.18% of the vote, while Eduardo del Castillo of the Movement for Socialism, MAS, had just 3.16%, according to initial results released by the electoral tribunal on Sunday night.Conservative former president Jorge "Tuto" Quiroga of the Alianza coalition was second with 26.94%, with over 92% of the ballots counted.If no candidate obtains more than 40% of the vote with a 10-point lead, there will be a runoff on October 19. Full official results will be announced within seven days.
And while Bolivia is a very different place than the USA, it's got one big, wealthy thing in common: its billionaire class supports the left. Bolivia's richest man, with links to Russia and Chinca, spent big on the Socialists:
A Bolivian billionaire bet on the wrong horse in Sunday's election, showing the limits of money in politics https://t.co/Zdy7Q2vJ6w
— Bloomberg (@business) August 18, 2025
The left was, predictably, exercised:
Bolivia is holding illegitimate presidential elections today without the candidacy of the most popular political force in the country, Evo Morales.
— Camila (@camilapress) August 17, 2025
The right-wing succeeded in its campaign to get Evo excluded from the ballot, now U.S. allies lead the first round polls. pic.twitter.com/9XNQN3GkBj
Of note to Americans complaining about how long it takes to count ballots in the US:
The electoral court stressed that the figures are “preliminary and not definitive”. That is because Bolivia uses two counts: a quicker one, based on photos of each ballot sent to a data-processing centre, and the slower definitive one, where every vote is publicly counted and scrutinised at polling stations before entering the system.
Of particular interest to voters in America? The election appears to have swung on promises to root out (cough cough Minnesota) systemic corruption:
Paz Pereira, the senator for Tarija, gave effusive thanks to his running mate, former police captain Edman Lara Montaño, who became known for exposing police corruption and who, according to many analysts, was a decisive draw for voters.
“We will fight corruption head on, dammit!” Paz Pereira shouted to journalists and dozens of supporters waiting for his speech late on Sunday in La Paz.
And it would't be a piece about a Bolivian election without a mildy comic side-note:
Rodrigo Paz, who won yesterday's bolivian presidential election, had his cellphone stolen during the celebrations. pic.twitter.com/StI0Kp6RMo
— Crazy Ass Moments in LatAm Politics (@AssLatam) August 18, 2025
It's easy, and historically justifiable, to get cynical about places like Bolivia. Politics in Bolivia change like Katy Perry's hairstyle.
But as a barometer measuring Socialism's appeal in the world right this moment, it's not the worst sign.
[1] No, nobody actually says that. Although I"m hoping to change that.
