Socialist Candidate Wins Bolivian Presidential Election

Luis Arce, a socialist and ally of former leader Evo Morales, won Bolivia’s recent presidential election. Exit polls suggest that Arce’s victory was large enough to prevent a runoff election. His win is a resounding triumph for socialists and people on the left and a major defeat for centrists and those on the right. Bolivia has experienced turmoil over the last several years with accusations of engaging in undemocratic practices on both sides.

Instructors, click the link below to download this week’s lecture for use in your classroom. The deck contains a writing prompt and a debate question as well as other assessment questions.

Download the PowerPoint Lecture Spark for “Socialist Candidate Wins Bolivian Presidential Election"

Links

“Bolivia election: Exit polls suggest win for Luis Arce”
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-54591963

“Bolivia election: exit polls suggest thumping win for Evo Morales’s party”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/19/bolivia-election-exit-polls-suggest-thumping-win-evo-morales-party-luis-arce

“Bolivia awaits official election results, but the Socialist candidate is being congratulated”
https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/19/americas/bolivia-presidential-election-results-2020-intl/index.html

“Socialist Movement Claims Landslide Election Win in Bolivia”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-18/bolivia-votes-for-president-after-a-year-without-elected-leaders

“Will Bolivia’s Elections Usher in a New Wave of Socialism in Latin America?”
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/10/16/bolivia-elections-morales-socialism-left-liberals-democracy/

“Bolivia’s socialists proclaim election victory”
https://www.ft.com/content/663b4e65-ae1e-4ad3-8a5b-bfe429fdd78b

“In Bolivia, Luis Arce, successor to Evo Morales, claims election victory”
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/bolivia-luis-arce-successor-evo-morales-claims-election-victory-n1243867

Assessment

Writing: Describe why the election of a socialist candidate and former cabinet member of Evo Morales creates challenges and uncertainty in Bolivia.
Debate: The U.S. and the international community should provide more aid and assistance to help create stability within Bolivia.
Poll: Bolivia should embrace socialist policies.
Short Answer: What would be the ramifications if Evo Morales returned to Bolivia?

Current events quiz:

1) All the following are false EXCEPT.

a. Bolivia’s budget expenditures exceed their budget revenues
b. Bolivia’s budget revenues exceed their budget expenditures
c. Bolivia’s budget revenues equal their budget expenditures
d. Bolivia’s budget revenues exceed 18 billion

2) Luis Arce can best be described as a?

a. Conservative
b. Centrist
c. Socialist
d. Libertarian

3) What is the concern of the incoming government increasing spending?

a. Bolivia will run a budget surplus
b. Bolivia will run a budget deficit
c. Bolivia will balance its budget
d. Bolivia will end its fiscal problems

4) Evo Morales recently won the Bolivian presidential election. (T/F)

5) Bolivia has experienced instability for the last several years. (T/F)

6) Over a third of the population lives below the poverty line. (T/F)

Answers:

1) A

2) C

3) B

4) False