Election of Evo Morales

Following a period of unrest in 2003, a left-leaning indigenous bloc emerged in Bolivian politics with demands known as the October Agenda [Webber, 2010]. These demands included the nationalization of natural gas fields, liberation from internally colonial race relations, and a radical redistribution of land and wealth. Bolivian President Carlos Mea failed to make satisfactory compromises, and in March 2005 resigned, blaming blockades organized by Evo Morales of the Movement for Socialism party (MAS). Following Mesa’s resignation, protestors in his support were reported shouting racial epithets at indigenous counter-protestors.  

Scenes of protest and polarization, punctuated by the continuing gas war in the summer of 2005, paved the way for Evo Morales to be elected with 53.7% of the popular vote on December 18, 2005 [Webber, 2010]. Morales’s election was seen as a massive victory for the long-marginalized indigenous people in Bolivia, as Morales, an Aymara, was Bolivia’s first indigenous president. His victory led to sweeping reforms akin to those found in the October Agenda that improved the status of indigenous people, especially Aymara and Quechua. Even today, the Aymara people point to Evo Morales’s election as a crucial turning point for indigenous power and agency in Bolivian society.