20 arrested, officers injured as ex-president’s supporters clash with police in Bolivia

No fewer than 20 people have been arrested, while three police officers were injured after supporters of former President Evo Morales, who has been barred from running for office again, clashed with security operatives, in Bolivia.

The police confirmed the clash on Thursday, May 29, 2025.

Demonstrators have been pushing for the indigenous leader to be allowed to participate in August elections, urging electoral authorities in La Paz to act despite a court ruling barring him from taking part and the fact that the May 19 registration deadline has passed.

On Thursday, Morales’ supporters threw stones and firecrackers at police, who responded with tear gas.

Police chief Roger Montano told reporters that 20 people were arrested and three officers were injured in the confrontations.

Tensions mounted on Thursday after a representative of the Bolivian National Action Party (Pan-Bol), which backs Morales’ candidacy, was prevented from entering the Supreme Electoral Tribunal to present the party’s list of candidates.

Officials said Pan-Bol failed to register Morales’ candidacy on deadline through a designated digital platform, but the party insisted they sent their application before deadline via email.

The Supreme Electoral Tribunal does not consider that a proper submission, AFP reported.

Morales, one of Latin America’s longest-serving leaders, governed in three periods until he resigned under a cloud in 2019 after seeking to extend his 13-year grip on power.

He was barred from running for office again after the Constitutional Court in 2023 upheld Bolivia’s constitutional two-term limit, which Morales previously managed to evade.

The Star