LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) – Bolivian voters have informed President Evo Morales that they want his current term to be his last, narrowly rejecting a constitutional amendment that would have let him run again in 2019.
It was the native Aymara’s first direct electoral defeat in a decade in power. He had previously prevailed in nationwide elections, including a 2009 constitutional rewrite, with an average 61.5 percent of the vote.
After the outcome became clear Tuesday night, celebrants poured into the streets in the eastern city of Santa Cruz, where opposition to Morales is strong. But fireworks also sounded in La Paz, where there is also weariness of official corruption.
Sunday’s ballot question was voted down 51 percent to 49 percent, with 99.5 percent of polling stations reporting, a margin of 160,000 votes. The outcome also blocks Vice President Alvaro Garcia from running again.
There was no immediate reaction from the president.