"There is a mountain range, there in Bolivia, the Altiplano, where the Revolution could spread to the rest of South America."

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Las Elecciones - Day 5

12/06/09

At 7:15 am the streets are almost deserted, vehicular traffic is prohibited today, with only a few exceptions, and all businesses closed. The only action is pedestrians on their way to vote, and a few dispersed street vendors. Leaving the hostel I linked with a Peruvian journalist and we went off to the national electoral court where the election inauguration took place around 8 am; we missed it by a hair. However, we did get to the vice president's home on time to catch him returning and snapped a few pictures.

The atmosphere is very calm, joyful, and relaxed. I've spoken to a few voters on the street, all of them in jovial moods, most of them of course have voted MAS; I ran into only one gentleman, journalist for La Razon opposition newspaper, who did not.

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I was blessed in solidarity to meet a score of Latin American journalists in front of the Alvaro residence; Indigenists, socialists, and revolutionaries, clearcut MAS supporters, two more Peruvians, one of which wearing a t-shirt that says "No se vende la Selva!", shout out to Bagua, two amazing Argentinians, and one Chilean. The Peruvian's t-shirt translates in English to "The Jungle is not for sale!", in reference to Alan Garcia's decision earlier in 2009 in compliance with the U.S.-Peru free trade agreement to open up the Peruvian Amazon to multinationals and unbridled exploration and exploitation. We chatted politics and strategy, exchanged contact info, pictures, hugs, and solidarity, and I went back to the centro to do a few things. I linked back up with the Chilean later to catch Alvaro voting, but have not been able to retrack the others so far.

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Around 12 I ran back to the area I had been before, to the Radisson hotel this time, where the president of the national electoral court was set to give a press conference and progress report on how the day was going. He was late arriving and nothing special was going to be reported, everything was moving along normally as expected. I ran into the Chilean again and he was able to find out where Alvaro was going to be voting. The location was the Escuela Augustin Espiazu, and by the time we got there he was already inside just about to vote, our timing couldn't of been more fortunate. After he dropped his ballot a single exclamation let out "Alvarrito!", and then the crowd erupted in cheering, Alvaro, Alvaro, Alvaro! On my way out I crossed a to be Manfred voter, a lone red and yellow spring jacket in a black and blue sea of MAS supporters. Manfred Reyes is a corrupt millionaire right-wing opposition candidate on corruption charges, who had a flight booked for Miami the day after the election. But the right will not be successful, and certainly not so in the department of La Paz. Here in the city the MAS receives roughly 85 % support, in El Alto over 90 %.

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Plaza Murillo, Whipalas, MASpalas, Masistas, and supporters from all over the world. Now, we wait.

Around 7 pm now, a little bit after, and I'm told that the early results are 62 % MAS, and that the final official results will come out later tonight or tomorrow, and that usually those vary from the early results only one or two points at most. So it is a significant victory, and I don't like tempting karma in saying that, even though it is an indisputable victory unless fraud is involved, but things are looking good as expected.

The way the result breaks down is that the results from the cities come in first, and those from the countryside later on. Writing on Day 7: So logically the rest of the vote coming in from the countryside would be overwhelmingly MAS support, but in the end the percentage lead only increased 1 % for a final total of 63 %. A huge win despite hopes for more, and still one of the largest genuine democratic majorities in the world today. A very hopeful and optimistic outlook, but the MAS nationally were aiming for as high as 70 % support.

The lead up to the conclusion was very quiet, all day the streets were relatively empty, but by 6 pm about 5,000 had amassed in the Plaza Murillo. Young and old alike, some right in the middle of the mass dancing and chanting, some on the sidelines spending time with family and friends and chatting. Flags of all kinds gracing the sky, only a few Bolivian flags, perhaps due to its ties with the not so adored past, and mainly MAS flags, Whipalas, MASpalas, and the WhipaMAS flag as glorious and proud symbols of the present, and the future.

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When I returned to the plaza later on, Evo spoke of the progress made in each department, and of the "two-thirds Plurinational Assembly responsibility granted, which obliges us to accelerate the process of change. We hold a great reponsibility not only with our country, but with all of humanity...."

When I left the plaza around 11, the crowd had not slightly dispersed, which had grown to some 15,000 people at its peak. It seemed people were just starting to celebrate, but with people essentially immobilized in their neighbourhoods and districts because of the no motor vehicle restrictions on election day, the crowd did not swell to what would be expected for a Bolivian election mass MAS victory.

The MAS strongly held their ground or made significant progress all over the country, notably winning the departments of Chuqisaca and Tarija for the first time, and gaining senators in Beni, Pando, and two in the opposite bastion of Santa Cruz for the first time.

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