Jean Arnault, the U.N. secretary-general’s personal envoy to Bolivia, said in a statement Friday he “welcomes the agreement” the Andean nation’s legislature reached Thursday to hold the country’s general election October 18.
Arnault said the “consensus is a fundamental achievement that provides guarantees regarding the date of the elections” and “helps to overcome political divisions and the uncertainty that worried many sectors of Bolivian society.”
The election had been scheduled for September 6 but was pushed back as the country dealt with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
Many Bolivians were anxious about the delayed elections, following the election last year that prompted protests around the country and the resignation of leftist President Evo Morales, the country’s first indigenous leader. Right-wing lawmaker Jeanine Anez was sworn in as Bolivia’s interim president. She will be on the October ballot.
Luis Arce will be the candidate for Morales’ Movement for Socialism party.
Arnault said with this week’s legislative agreement, “the path towards a reliable electoral process whose results are respected by all actors is effectively consolidated.”