Event Summary
On 17 August 2025, national elections were held in Bolivia. Rodrigo Paz of the Christian Democratic Party and Jorge Tuto Quiroga of Libre obtained first and second place in the voting and will go to a runoff on October 19. The elections took place in an environment of relative uncertainty due to the several constitutional actions that tried to stop the process. The electoral process was further marked by structural deficiencies that affected both its transparency and fairness according to reports from international electoral observation delegations, including the European Union and the Organization of American States (OAS).
The persistence of problems such as limited public funding, lack of effective oversight, media polarization, disinformation, and strategic practices of candidate substitution reflect structural deficiencies of the electoral system. While eligibility requirements are generally inclusive, excessively rigid provisions limited access to candidacies. In addition, the high number of disqualifications reflected a complex bureaucracy and a contradictory legal framework. The OAS Electoral Observation Mission highlights that the use of flexible deadlines to replace candidates, inequity in access to the media, and the use of state resources for proselytizing purposes are recurrent practices and pointed to the possibility of disqualifications even after the printing of ballots as a factor of uncertainty. Added to this were media polarization, misinformation and inequity in news coverage. An electoral observation report of civil society, headed by Fundación Jubileo, described as “worrying” the levels of insecurity in the pre-electoral stage for civil servants and civilians. This situation motivated the security forces and the Electoral Body itself to work together to guarantee the process. Finally, the law limited indigenous participation to the subnational level, preventing their organizations from competing directly in general elections, which reduced their political influence and national representation.
The event has a significant impact on the enabling environment for democracy and political participation. First, political actors are affected by inequality in access to financing and media. The exclusion of candidates due to bureaucratic procedures weakens equality of opportunity and limits the political offer for voters. Second, the broader citizen’s engagement with the electoral process and public discourses surrounding the elections are affected. Media polarization and the circulation of disinformation affect the right of citizens to an informed vote. In addition, the exclusion of indigenous organizations from the national level reduces political representation and limits the diversity of voices in public debate.
As a result, there is a sustained erosion of citizen confidence in electoral institutions. The possibility of late disqualifications, the manipulation of deadlines to replace candidates, and the use of state resources for partisan purposes generate perceptions of partiality and weaken the legitimacy of electoral authorities. If this distrust persists, it could translate into a lower level of citizen participation and engagement. The continuity of media polarization can further accentuate social fragmentation, hinder democratic dialogue, and favor narratives that delegitimize the electoral process before and after the elections.