Is This the End of MAS?
Bolivians head to the polls on Sunday amid a spiraling economic crisis and the total collapse of the Movement Toward Socialism. A right-wing victory could bring neoliberal austerity back to Bolivia, unleashing a new cycle of social unrest.
Led by former president Evo Morales since 2005, the MAS presided over massive social transformations, including a dramatic reduction in poverty and inequality in one of Latin America’s poorest countries. (Pablo Rivera / Anadolu via Getty Images)
As Bolivia celebrated its two hundredth year of independence last week, the mood on the streets and in the countryside was far from jubilant.
National elections take place on Sunday, and Bolivia is confronting a spiraling economic crisis and the total collapse of the left-wing Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) that has been in power for the past two decades.
It looks more than likely that the right wing will win power, with the latest polls putting far-right Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga in the lead at 24.5 percent and center-right Samuel Doria Medina in a close second at 23.6 percent. Bolivia now stands on the brink of a new historic cycle without the MAS in power.
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