On 14 November, a Chamber of the Constitutional Tribunal recognized Grover Garcia, an ally of President Luis Arce, as head of the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) party. Division within MAS, stemming from a power struggle between former President Evo Morales and Arce, led the party to hold competing assemblies, one in which Morales was chosen as the party’s leader and a second in which ‘Arcistas’ gained leadership positions. The Chamber confirmed the validity of the assembly held by Arce loyalists, taking control of the party from its founder, Morales, despite previous rulings of the Electoral Tribunal that determined both factions had violated the party’s statutes. In a separate ruling it confirmed Morales’s ineligibility to run for president, vice-president or preside the legislature's chambers because he has exceeded the constitutional limit of 10 years as president. Demonstrations in support of Morales continued, with some reports of violence and with Morales temporarily going on hunger strike. Whether Morales continues to call for mobilizations and to seek elected office, remains to be seen.

Sources: Educación Radiofónica de Bolivia, La Razón, El Pais

Former President Evo Morales has accused the government of attempting to assassinate him after his vehicle was attacked with gunfire in Cochabamba. Luis Arce’s government refuted this, contending that Morales’s vehicle evaded a checkpoint established in a police operation and ran over a police officer. Officials asserted that police at the checkpoint were shot first by someone in Morales’s vehicle. The mutual accusations take place in the context of heightened political and social conflict due to division within the MAS party. Both Morales and Arce have been accused of sexual misconduct and crimes; both deny the allegations and claim they are politically motivated. A prosecutor issued an arrest warrant against Morales after he did not comply with an order to give a statement in an investigation he faces for statutory rape and trafficking in persons. Morales’s supporters have carried out roadblocks and organized protests against his prosecution. Clashes between protesters and police have left dozens injured. 

Sources: Infobae, Reuters, France 24, BBC, El Pais, The Guardian

On 13 August, electoral authorities published the date for judicial elections. On 1 December, after a year of delay, voters will be choosing members of the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court, Agro-Environmental Tribunal, and members of the Council of Magistrates. This was facilitated on account of agreements between parliamentary groups, including opposition lawmakers who previously had objected to the election of judges by popular vote, but now are encouraging participation to end what they view as the arbitrary extension of terms of members of the judiciary. Lawmakers had been unable to decide on procedural issues related to the voting process and a list of candidates for all the judgeships that will be elected (26 in total), which required a two-thirds majority approval. The agreement also follows differences between the legislature and the judiciary over the legality of the extension of the terms of high court judges, and over the validity of the decisions taken by such judges after their original tenures expired.    

Sources: Órgano Electoral Plurinacional, Hoy Bolivia, El Deber, El Pais, International IDEA

On 26 June, Juan José Zúñiga, a former army chief and general, led other former commanders and members of the military in occupying Plaza Murillo, the main square in La Paz where the offices of the executive and legislature are located.  Zúñiga and armed supporters had entered the square with armoured vehicles.   Zúñiga had been dismissed as army chief a day earlier, after stating he would block any bid from former President Evo Morales to run for re-election in 2025. President Luis Arce confronted  Zúñiga and accused him of leading a coup.  Zúñiga was arrested by police the same day, along with others who participated in the occupation of Plaza Murillo.  Zúñiga, who has been charged with several crimes, has given conflicting remarks regarding his motivations, first alleging his attempt was to free political prisoners and improve conditions for Bolivians, but later suggesting that it had been President Arce who had staged the events of 26 June, as a ploy to boost his approval ratings. 

Sources: Agencia Boliviana de información, CNN, El Pais

On 6 June, the Legislative Assembly approved a bill that suspends judges and magistrates of high courts whose mandates had been prolonged given the delay in the holding of judicial elections. It establishes that such suspensions should be considered to have taken effect on 1 January, and that any subsequent decisions that these judges have issued should be considered as null and void. The bill was supported by center-right opposition members, as well as by the “Evista” wing of ruling party Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS), who denounced attempts by “Arcista” lawmakers to suspend the session. Supporters of Evo Morales have long criticized the extension of mandates of judges as illegal. According to the Constitutional Court,  the adopted bill should have no legal effects, as the  Legislative Assembly’s related session was convened by the Senate’s president, and not by Vice-President David Choquehuanca, who would ordinarily preside its sessions (the latter was away on official travel). Confrontation between these two branches of government could continue to delay the holding of judicial elections and certainty over the tenure of acting judges in the coming months.

Sources: Educación Radiofonica de Bolivia, El Pais, Agencia Boliviana de Informacion