Government & politics — Bolivia

• history: many previous; latest drafted 6 August 2006 to 9 December 2008, approved by referendum 25 January 2009,
• effective 7 February 2009 amendments: proposed through public petition by at least 20% of voters or by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly; passage requires approval by at least two-thirds majority vote of the total membership of the Assembly and approval in a referendum; amended 2013

• chief of state: President Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora (since 8 November 2020); Vice President David CHOQUEHUANCA Cespedes (since 8 November 2020); note - the president is
• both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora (since 8 November 2020); Vice Presiden
• Cabinet appointed by the president elections/appointments: president and vic
• e president directly elected on the same ballot one of 3 ways: candidate wins at least 50% of the vote, or at least 40% of the vote and 10% more than the next highest candidate; otherwise a second round is held and the winner determined by simple majority vote; president and vice president are elected by majority vote to serve a 5-year term; no term limits (changed from two-consecutive-term limit by Constitutional Court in late 2017); election last held on 18 Oc
• tober 2020 (next to be held in October 2025) election results: 2020: Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora elected president; percent of vote - Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora (MAS) 55.1%; Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert (CC) 28.8%; Luis Fernando CAMACHO Vaca (Creemos) 14%; other 2.1% 2019: Juan Evo MORALES Ayma reelected president; percent of vote - Juan Evo MORALES Ayma (MAS) 61%; Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana (UN) 24.5%; Jorge QUIROGA Ramirez (POC) 9.1%; other 5.4%; note - MORALES resigned from office on 10 November 2019 over alleged election rigging; resignations of all his constitutionally designated successors followed, including the Vice President, President of the Senate, President of the Chamber of Deputies, and First Vice President of the Senate, leaving the Second Vice President of the Senate, Jeanine ANEZ Chavez, the highest-ranking official still in office; her appointment to the presidency was endorsed by Bolivia's Constitutional Court, and she served as interim president until the 8 November 2020 inauguration of Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora, who won the 18 October 2020 presidential election

Description

bicameral Plurinational Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa Plurinacional consists of: Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (36 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; 70 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 53 directly elected in single-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote, and 7 (apportioned to non-contiguous, rural areas in 7 of the 9 states) directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote; members serve 5-year terms)

Elections

Chamber of Senators - last held on 18 October 2020 (next to be held in 2025) Chamber of Deputies - last held on 18 October 2020 (next to be held in 2025)

Election Results

• Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA
• seats by party - MAS 21, ACC 11, Creemos 4
• composition as of October 2023 - men 16, women 20, percent of women 55.6% Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA
• seats by party - MAS 75, ACC 39, Creemos 16
• composition as of October 2023 - men 70, women 60, percent of women 46.2%;

Note

total Plurinational Legislative Assembly percent of women - 48.2%

• highest court(s): Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo de Justicia (consists of 12 judges or ministros organized into civil, penal, social, and administrative chambers); Plurinational Constitutional Tribunal (consists of 7 primary and 7 alternate magistrates); Plurinational Electoral Organ (consists of 7 members and 6 alternates); National Agro-Environment Court (consists of 5 primary and 5 alternate judges; Council of the Judiciary (consists of 3 prima
• ry and 3 alternate judges) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court, Plurinational Constitutional Tribunal, National Agro-Environmental Court, and Council of the Judiciary candidates pre-selected by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly and elected by direct popular vote; judges elected for 6-year terms; Plurinational Electoral Organ judges appointed - 6 by the Legislative Assembly and 1 by the president of the republic;
• members serve single 6-year terms subordinate courts: National Electoral Court; District Courts (in each of the 9 administrative departments); agro-environmental lower courts

• Community Citizen Alliance or ACC [Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert]
• Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Juan Evo MORALES Ayma]
• National Unity or UN [Samuel DORIA MEDINA Auza]
• Revolutionary Left Front or FRI [Edgar GUZMAN Jauregui]
• Social Democrat Movement or MDS [Ruben COSTAS Aguilera]
• We Believe or Creemos [Luis Fernando CAMACHO Vaca]
• Note: We Believe or Creemos [Luis Fernando CAMACHO Vaca] is a coalition comprised of several opposition parties that participated in the 2020 election, which includes the Christian Democratic Party (PDC) and Solidarity Civic Unity (UCS)

• yes residency requirement for naturalization: 3 years

CAN, CD, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNOOSA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission

Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d'Affaires Debra HEVIA (since September 2023) embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, La Paz mailing address: 3220 La Paz Place, Washington DC 20512-3220

telephone

[591] (2) 216-8000

FAX

[591] (2) 216-8111

Email address and website

• ConsularLaPazACS@state.gov
• https://bo.usembassy.gov/

note

in September 2008, the Bolivian Government expelled the US Ambassador to Bolivia, Philip GOLDBERG, and both countries have yet to reinstate their ambassadors

chief of mission

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Maysa Rossana URENA MENACHO (since 1 September 2022)

chancery

3014 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone

[1] (202) 483-4410

FAX

[1] (202) 328-3712

Email address and website

• embolivia.wdc@gmail.com
• https://www.boliviawdc.org/en-us/

consulate(s) general

Houston, Los Angeles, Maple Grove (MN), Miami, New York, Washington, DC