2005 Bolivian general election

none 2005 Bolivian general election Bolivia state presidential no 2002 Bolivian general election 2002 2009 Bolivian general election 2009 3,671,152 84.50% ( 12.61pp) 18 December 2005 yes Presidential election presidential 130x130px Evo Morales 2006 (cropped2).jpg Evo Morales Movement for Socialism (Bolivia) Álvaro García Linera 1,544,374 53.74% Jorge Quiroga. Suárez, Antonio. 2001, Antonio Suárez collection, La Paz (Cropped).png Jorge Quiroga Social and Democratic Power María Duchen 821,745 28.59% SamuelDM.png Samuel Doria Medina National Unity Front Carlos Dabdoub 224,090 7.80% 3x4.svg Michiaki Nagatani Revolutionary Nationalist Movement Guillermo Bedregal 185,859 6.47% 300px Results by department 260px Results by province President Eduardo Rodríguez (interim) Independent (politician) Evo Morales Movement for Socialism (Bolivia) yes Legislative election yes yes All 36 seats in the Chamber of SenatorsAll 130 seats in the Chamber of Deputies Chamber of Senators Social Democratic Power New 13 Movimiento al Socialismo 8 12 National Unity Front New 1 Revolutionary Nationalist Movement 10 1 Chamber of Deputies Movimiento al Socialismo 27 72 Social Democratic Power New 43 National Unity Front New 8 Revolutionary Nationalist Movement 36 7 General elections were held in Bolivia on 18 December 2005. Evo Morales of the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party was elected President of Bolivia with 54% of the vote, the first time a candidate had received an absolute majority since the flawed 1978 elections. Morales was sworn in on 22 January 2006 for a five-year term. The MAS also won a majority of seats in the Chamber of Deputies and emerged as the largest party in the Senate. Simultaneously voters elected prefects, the highest executive office in each of Bolivia's nine departments. This was the first time the office had been chosen at the ballot box. Subsequently, departmental elections were held separately from national elections, with the next one held in April 2010. Background In the early 2000s there were high levels of political instability across the country, including five presidents in four years. Much of the instability dates back to the economic reforms otherwise known as "shock therapy" implemented by President Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada whereby many formerly public utilities were privatized. These reforms ultimately led to the First Bolivian Gas War in October 2003 where protesters, many of them of indigenous descent, essentially forced the resignation of Sánchez de Lozada. Vice President Carlos Mesa took office as president. In his year in office, Mesa held a national referendum on the prospect of the nationalization of the hydrocarbons industry which he claimed to have won. Critics however said that the questions were vague and ambiguous with regard to outright nationalization of the hydrocarbons industry. In May 2005 the Second Bolivian Gas War began after Congress agreed to raise taxes on foreign companies from 18% to 32%. The unions, led by Evo Morales, felt the law did not go far enough and effectively shut down the country, blockading major roads and cutting off the food supplies of several large cities. In June 2005 the protests ultimately led to Mesa's resignation. Supreme Court Chief Justice Eduardo Rodríguez assumed the position of interim President of the Republic after the presidents of both the Senate and Chamber of Deputies declined the position and Rodríguez was fourth in line of succession. Viewed as an apolitical figure, Rodríguez was welcomed by protesters and called for the presidential elections slated to take place in 2007 to be brought forward to December 2005. Electoral system Voters had two ballots: a national-level ballot to elect the president and the nationally elected members of Congress, and one for members of Congress elected in single-member constituencies in the Chamber of Deputies. Senators and deputies were returned on a departmental basis; senators were elected on a majoritarian basis, with the first-place party receiving two and the second-place party one, while deputies were elected on a mixed-member basis, with district deputies joining list deputies awarded by compensatory proportional representation. However, there was no national distribution of seats. Voting was compulsory for all Bolivians over the age of 18, but Bolivians living abroad were not able to take part. Results President Movement for Socialism Evo Morales Álvaro García Linera 1544374 Social and Democratic Power Jorge Quiroga María Duchen 821745 National Unity Front Samuel Doria Medina Carlos Dabdoub 224090 Revolutionary Nationalist Movement Michiaki Nagatani Guillermo Bedregal 185859 Pachakuti Indigenous Movement Felipe Quispe Camila Choqueticlla 61948 New Republican Force Gildo Angulo Cabrera Gonzalo Quiroga 19667 Agrarian Patriotic Front Eliceo Rodríguez Pari Rodolfo Flores 8737 Social Union of the Workers of Bolivia Néstor García Rojas Julio Antonio Uzquiano 7381 104570 124046 3671152 IFES, IFES Chamber of Deputies File:Cámara de Diputados de Bolivia elecciones 2005.svg Proportional Constituency Movement for Socialism 1544374 27 968120 45 72 +45 Social and Democratic Power 821745 21 625230 22 43 +39 National Unity Front 224090 7 260290 1 8 New Revolutionary Nationalist Movement 185859 5 179319 2 7 – Pachakuti Indigenous Movement 61948 0 73499 0 0 –6 New Republican Force 19667 0 53634 0 0 –25 Agrarian Patriotic Front 8737 0 48322 0 0 New Social Union of the Workers of Bolivia 7381 0 16298 0 0 New 104570 90016 124046 779152 0 3671152 3671152 Election Passport, IPU Chamber of Senators File:Senado de Bolivia elecciones 2005.svg Movement for Socialism 1544374 12 +4 Social and Democratic Power 821745 13 +12 National Unity Front 224090 1 New Revolutionary Nationalist Movement 185859 1 – Pachakuti Indigenous Movement 61948 0 0 New Republican Force 19667 0 –2 Agrarian Patriotic Front 8737 0 New Social Union of the Workers of Bolivia 7381 0 New 104570 124046 3671152 0 IFES, IFES Aftermath Morales claimed his victory marked Bolivia's first election of an indigenous head of state, but this claim generated controversy,http://www.bolpress.com/art.php?Cod=2006012217 Bolpress 2006-01-01 ¿Evo indígena o mestizo? 2007-07-23 https://web.archive.org/web/20070608233501/http://bolpress.com/art.php?Cod=2006012217 2007-06-08 dead due to the number of mestizo presidents who came before him,Mesa, José, Gisbert, Teresa, Mesa Gisbert, Carlos D. Historia de Bolivia: Segunda Edición corregida y actualizada. Editorial Gisbert. La Paz, 1998. and was challenged publicly by such figures as Mario Vargas Llosa,https://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/spanish/latin_america/newsid_4633000/4633898.stm BBC Mundo 2006-01-21 Vargas Llosa: "un nuevo racismo" who accused Morales of fomenting racial divisions in an increasingly mestizo Latin America. References External links National Electoral Court of Bolivia (in Spanish) https://web.archive.org/web/20081201021517/http://www.cne.org.bo/ 2008-12-01 BBC "Crucial Choice for Bolivian Voters" BBC "Q&A: Bolivian Elections" CBC "Left-wing candidate favoured to win Bolivian election" NPR's Weekend Edition: "Bolivians Vote for President" NPR's All Things Considered "Bolivia Prepares for Presidential Election" MAS Official Campaign Site Bolivia Presidential election Category:Parliamentary elections in Bolivia Category:Evo Morales Category:Presidential elections in Bolivia