Breaking news – and likely trouble. An electoral board has ruled that the Dec. 4 presidential election will not go through, due to a redistricting dispute. Now, the possibility of roadblocks and using food as a weapon looms. The current caretaker president – who’s in office only because the last two presidents were thrown out by roadblockers – said he would resign if elections were not held by Dec. 4. Well, they’re not being held.
I have a blogosphere reaction roundup to follow. But first, here is the news:
Agencia EFE has the story here:
Electoral court suspends Bolivia’s December ballot
La Paz, Oct 28 (EFE).- Bolivia’s CNE electoral tribunal announced Friday the suspension of early presidential and general elections set for Dec. 4.
The announcement came after lawmakers failed to meet the deadline set by the CNE for agreeing on a potentially destabilizing congressional redistricting that the tribunal demanded as a prerequisite for the balloting.
“The CNE finds itself obliged to inform the citizenry that it is no longer possible to hold the general election on Dec. 4, 2005, as previously scheduled, as all the pending technical and operational activities cannot be completed,” the court said in a statement.
Since the CNE’s initial order was handed down Sept. 22, Bolivians have remained in suspense as to when, or even whether, the balloting will take place, given resistance to the reallocation of legislative seats on the part of Indian-populated western highland provinces that stand to lose representation in favor of prosperous, mainly white Santa Cruz in the east.
Blog reactions:
Miguel Buitrago of MABB says that the election isn’t exactly halted, only that a court says it cannot meet the Dec. 4 date. He says the executive branch still can, but it all does indicate the parlous state of Bolivian democracy that this is going on at all. A new date, Dec. 18, is being bruited around.
UPDATE: Miguel Buitrago of MABB has a first-rate new post, expertly explaining what is really happening. “What a chaotic situation,” he opens. But after reading his post, at least it will make sense.
Eduardo Avila at Barrio Flores has an excellent concise analysis about Morales’ reaction, the impact on Bolivia’s voters, and where this is potentially headed.
Alexey at Alexey Writes has some perspective on the growth of the blogosphere as Bolivia’s crisis worsens and adds some thoughts about the inadequacies of newspaper coverage and the need for debate.
Jim Schultz at the leftist Democracy Center sees a lot of potential for trouble, too. He has some firsthand color of what the campaign looks like on the ground in Cochabamba today here.
Alvaro Piaggio at Blog de Bolivia in Santa Cruz cites some of Evo Morales’ previous statements in the wake of the ruling and explains that it is proof of his hypocrisy.
Antonio Saravia at The Economist en su Laberinto discusses Evo Morales’ campaign strategy of ‘elect me or you’ll get roadblocks.’ He calls it ‘Your money or your life’ and compares it to highway robbery. He also discusses the differences between Evo Morales and his ex-terrorist running mate and points out that they are not all that unified as a team.