Today Bolivians go to the polls to elect their judges, making the country the first (and so far only) nation in the world that chooses its highest judges at the ballot box. Reports suggest that the lead-up to the election is not going well, with widespread voter apathy and resignation, and lots of behind-the-scenes politicization of the process:
In Bolivia, even senior judicial officials struggle to sound positive when asked to defend the election.
“It should be a calm, easy and simple process, but it has become very litigious, very controversial,” Francisco Vargas, the vice president of Bolivia’s electoral tribunal, told The Associated Press from the court in central La Paz.
This year in Bolivia, experts find it even harder than usual to praise the system. With the posts up for grabs every six years, Sunday’s vote was supposed to take place in late 2023.
But as the deadline approached last year, the Constitutional Court — packed with allies of President Luis Arce — suddenly intervened to push the vote back a year, escalating his power struggle with his former mentor and current rival, Morales, over who will lead their long-dominant leftist party into Bolivia’s 2025 presidential election.
Both understand that whoever wins over the Constitutional Court ensures their own political survival.
The Interdependent Third Branch 