It looks like Bolivia is done with socialism. For the first time since 2005, the country has officially elected a candidate who is not a part of Evo Morales’ Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) party. This comes as Bolivia faces a serious economic crisis — something that seems to go hand-in-hand with years of socialism.
As I reported back in August, the country held its general election, which led to a runoff between center-right Senator Rodrigo Paz, who earned 32.18% of the vote, and conservative former President Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga, who earned 26.81% of the vote.
That run-off was on Sunday. Paz won, with preliminary results showing he earned 54.5% to Quiroga’s 45.5%. I know a lot of conservatives outside of Bolivia were hoping Quiroga would win, as Paz is a bit more to the center, but either way, almost everyone who isn’t a leftist agrees that this is a huge improvement over the last couple of decades. Many say Paz’s running mate, Edman Lara, a young — he just turned 40 —charismatic former police officer and lawyer whose social media savvy helped expose corruption within the country, helped Paz edge out Quiroga.
President-elect Paz represents the Christian Democrat Party. He was born in Spain and is the son of former Bolivian president Jaime Paz Zamora. He’s also a free market kind of guy, though he plans to be a bit cautious about making blanket changes to the country’s economy. He plans to take a “gradual approach to free-market reforms in hopes of avoiding a sharp recession or jump in inflation that would enrage the masses.”
So, what does this mean for the rest of the world?
Well, for the United States, it most likely means a new ally, or, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio put it last week, “a transformative opportunity.”
Paz, who visited Washington, D.C., in September and has been in talks with various Trump administration officials, private oil and gas companies in Texas, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, says he wants to restore relations between the two nations. He also promised to “secure U.S. fuel supplies” to stabilize Bolivia’s economy and “vowed to reinstate ambassadors and appoint a high-level envoy to strengthen trade ties.” During his trip to D.C., he unveiled plans for a $1.5 billion economic cooperation deal.
“We didn’t go to ask for money, but to present a government plan and explore how to work in a coordinated manner,” he said.
It also appears that he’ll join Trump’s fight against narco-terrorism in the Western Hemisphere. Bloomberg reports that Paz “signaled openness to allowing the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to resume operations in Bolivia after the agency was expelled in 2008.” Speaking of narco-terrorism, in the past, Paz has said he would suspend relations with Venezuela until it restores democracy. Essentially, he refuses any ties to the country’s illegitimate narco-terrorist “president” Nicolás Maduro. He’s also praised opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and said her recent Nobel Peace Prize win “inspires millions of citizens in Latin America and the world to once again believe in the power of democracy and the strength of truth.”
But it gets better. In addition to his desire for Latin America to embrace democracy, Paz promises to distance Bolivia from its ties to China, Russia, and Iran. This, to me, is the best part because I wholeheartedly believe that the most important thing our country can do right now is kick China out of the Western Hemisphere as much as we possibly can. Bolivia is actually home to the largest stash of lithium in the world, and China has been cozying up to the country for this reason, but corruption and poor technology have stalled output. Paz wants to get away from Beijing and form joint ventures with U.S.-based companies, like Tesla, to improve output and outcomes.
So, we’ll see what happens, but right now, this looks like a win for our hemisphere. Several Republican members of Congress and non-socialist world leaders have taken to social media to congratulate Paz tonight, including our own State Department, which called it a “historic moment” and said the U.S. is looking forward to partnering with Bolivia’s new president:
We look forward to partnering with President-elect @Rodrigo_PazP to restore economic stability, expand private-sector growth, and strengthen security. We also commend the Bolivian people in this historic moment for their country.
— Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs (@WHAAsstSecty) October 20, 2025
On Sunday night, Paz also announced that he had already received a call from Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau.
“I want to thank Landau, who on behalf of Trump, has called us to move forward with a close relationship with the most important government in the world,” he said.
Bolivia’s new president @Rodrigo_PazP has already spoken with @ChrisLandauUSA. Can’t wait to see how this new relationship strengthens the Western Hemisphere and keeps China out. 💪🏻 https://t.co/9hyaXglPqB
— SarahDownSouth (@SarahDownSouth) October 20, 2025
The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this. Help us continue to report the truth about the Schumer Shutdown. Use promo code POTUS47 to get 74% off your VIP membership. That’s just $12.74 for the entire year. Click here to get started.
