Morales names his candidate for Bolivia presidential vote
Former Bolivian President Evo Morales (C) gestures during the announcement of the presidential ticket for the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party for the upcoming Bolivian elections, Buenos Aires, Jan. 19, 2020. (AFP Photo)


Former Bolivian President Evo Morales announced from Argentina Sunday the candidates for his socialist party in Bolivia's May 3 elections, which will serve as a re-run of the disputed October vote and be the first in some two decades without him on the ballot.

Speaking at a news conference in Buenos Aires, Morales named his former economy minister Luis Arce Catacora as the Movement to Socialism's (MAS) presidential candidate, with the former foreign minister David Choquehuanca as his running mate. Choquehuanca belongs to the same Aymara indigenous group as Morales

But, there were quick signs of dissent within the party over the choice of Choquehuanca for running mate. Sen. Omar Aguilar, a member of the party, said the decision was difficult to accept and predicted it would create problems with peasant leaders who had backed Morales' long-time foreign minister, Diego Pary Rodriguez.

Morales, who governed Bolivia for nearly 14 years, resigned from the presidency in November when the police and army withdrew support after several weeks of demonstrations that erupted over allegations of fraud in the Oct. 20 presidential election that Morales claimed to have won.

An audit by the Organization of American States found serious irregularities in the vote count. After Morales left the country, an interim government took over and annulled the October election, scheduling a new national election for May. Morales is living in Argentina after accepting an offer of asylum from that government.