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Political Overview

The current democratization process in Bolivia began in 1982 after 18 years of military-based authoritarian rule. Once considered one of the most stable Andean democracies, economic disparity and ethnic and regional conflict have contributed to anti-party and anti-political sentiments.

In December 2005 general elections, coca union leader Evo Morales won the presidency with an unprecedented mandate of 53 percent of the vote. Opposition group Democratic and Social Power (PODEMOS) won a plurality in the senate, and Morales’ Movement to Socialism (MAS) won a majority in the lower house. The MAS party nationalized the hydrocarbon industry and passed an agrarian land reform bill. President Morales delivered on his campaign promise to convene a constituent assembly to rewrite the country’s constitution.

Bolivians went to the polls in July 2006 to vote in a national referendum on regional autonomy and to elect 255 constituent assembly delegates. The “NO” regional autonomy vote won 54 percent nationally despite four of the nine departments voting in favor of further decentralization. The results highlighted political and socioeconomic fissures in Bolivia. The MAS won a 54 percent simple majority of assembly seats, but deliberations have been mired in conflict between the MAS and opposition parties. Opposition groups have coordinated protests and hunger strikes over perceived infringements of minority rights; and government sympathizers have threatened to take to the streets if the Assembly deliberations do not proceed.

Elevated citizen expectations of the Morales administration and the constituent assembly’s ability to improve their daily lives — particularly among indigenous and poorer sectors of the population — are feeding frustration with democratic mechanisms for citizen representation and threaten the country’s political stability.

NDI Activities

NDI’s Citizen Dialogue program aims to diminish polarization by facilitating dialogue between civil society — particularly indigenous groups — political parties and elected officials regarding recent electoral processes and democratic development issues. NDI is conducting a series of community workshops in the departments of Cochabamba, La Paz and Santa Cruz to provide objective information about recent elections and ongoing political processes. Workshop participants have contributed to constructive dialogue and consensus building regarding community concerns.

Continual poverty has fed public skepticism that party rhetoric will translate into real reforms. In 2004 and 2006, NDI conducted two assessments on the incentives for Bolivian political parties to pursue poverty reduction strategies. Assessment findings identified several measures that could improve the party system’s response to poverty, such as improving internal communication practices, policy coordination mechanisms and civil service reform. NDI will use these findings to facilitate dialogue within parties on the relationship between political reform and poverty-reducing economic growth.

NDI is supporting party-strengthening initiatives in Bolivia through the regional Political Leadership Program. NDI launched this program in 1999 to strengthen the leadership skills and ability of emerging political leaders to promote the modernization and renewal of political parties. Following a rigorous selection process, the one-year program begins with an intensive leadership development seminar and continues in-country with the emerging leaders implementing party-strengthening projects. In 2007, NDI engaged 30 youth party members, including six Bolivian participants representing the MAS, National Revolutionary Movement (MNR), PODEMOS and National Unity (UN).

In partnership with the Universidad Andina Simon Bolivar (UASB), NDI is implementing a political leadership training academy for emerging women leaders to strengthen their ability to effectively engage in politics as well as promote a network of politically active women leaders. NDI recruited participants from a broad cross section of civil society groups and political parties.

Past NDI Programs

NDI has worked to help Bolivian political parties become more democratic, transparent and responsive to the needs of Bolivian citizens.

Responding to requests for technical assistance, NDI worked with political parties and citizen and indigenous groups to strengthen mechanisms of internal dialogue, transparency and outreach in compliance with the 1999 Political Party Law, including training on the themes of internal democracy, transparency and outreach to new sectors. In addition to various citizen and indigenous groups, participating parties included MAS, Free Bolivia Movement (MBL); Pachakutik Indigenous Movement (MIP), Movement of the Revolutionary Left (MIR), MNR, Fearless Movement (MSM), National Democratic Action (ADN), New Republic Force (NFR), Christian Democrat Party (PDC), UN, Civic Solidarity Union (UCS), and Plan Progress (PP).

To assist parties in their candidate recruitment practices, NDI implemented a nationwide women’s leadership school, Winning with Women, which trained more than 2,000 women on political leadership skills and campaign strategies for the 2004 municipal elections, and responsible municipal management practices.

Prior to the 2005 general elections, NDI coordinated presidential platform debates with candidates’ parties in several departments, and assisted parties and their prefect and congressional candidates to discuss and develop responsive platforms. In preparation for the July 2006 electoral processes, NDI conducted informational seminars that increased the awareness of more than 7,000 participants regarding the constituent assembly and regional autonomy processes. NDI coordinated constituent assembly candidate debates in several departments. NDI also facilitated exchanges between parties and constitutional experts from Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela to share lessons learned from their constitutional reform experiences.

Using participatory training methodologies, NDI prepared 40 party trainers from eight parties, including ADN, MAS, MIP, MIR, MNR, MSM, PDC and UN. These trainers have replicated the training on the topics of internal democracy, transparency and outreach to new sectors.

Contact Information

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