Bolivian Christian Democratic Party (PDC) leader Rodrigo Paz became the country’s new president, becoming the first conservative to win a presidential election in nearly two decades.
Paz will take office on November 8. However, his party does not have a majority in Bolivia’s legislature, so he will need to form alliances with other parties to effectively govern the country.
With 97 percent of the ballots counted, Paz won 54.5 percent of the vote in Sunday’s runoff, a wide margin over right-wing former interim president Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga.
Here’s everything you need to know about Rodrigo Paz, the new president of Bolivia.
Who is Rodrigo Paz?
58-year-old centrist senator and economist Rodrigo Paz is the first non-socialist leader to win the post of Bolivian president.
He is the son of President Jaime Paz Zamora, who ruled from 1989 to 1993, and Carmen Pereira of Spain.
Rodrigo Paz was born in Santiago de Compostela, Spain and spent his early childhood there.
His father, one of the founders of the Marxist-inspired Revolutionary Left Movement in the 1960s, went into exile in Spain to escape the oppressive rule of General Hugo Bánzer, one of a series of dictators who ruled Bolivia from 1964 to 1982.
Rodrigo Paz studied economics in the United States before returning home to join his father’s party in Bolivia.
While Paz returned to Bolivia to join the leftist party founded by his father, he later transformed into a conservative committed to pragmatic, pro-business reforms.
His career began as a legislator in the lower house of Congress. He then became mayor of the southern city of Tarija, his hometown, from 2015–2020.
Rodrigo Paz has been a Bolivian senator ever since.
During the campaign, he promoted what he called “capitalism for everyone” and promised to remove the “state obstacle” to economic development.
In his victory speech, Paz said Bolivia would “reclaim its place on the international stage.”
“Bolivia is breathing the winds of change,” he told his supporters. “Ideology does not put food on the table. What does is the right to work, strong institutions, legal certainty and private property.”
Bolivia is suffering from an economic crisis, including annual inflation of nearly 25 percent and critical shortages of US dollars and fuel.
