Bolivian president-elect Rodrigo Paz Pereira. / Credit: Jallallabolivia, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
ACI Prensa Staff, Oct 21, 2025 / 18:26 pm (CNA).
Rodrigo Paz Pereira of the Christian Democratic Party is the president-elect of Bolivia after defeating former Bolivian President Jorge "Tuto" Quiroga Ramírez of the Free Alliance coalition in a close runoff election on Oct. 19.
Both were seen as candidates from the political right, although Paz Pereira is considered more centrist. The election marks the end of nearly two decades of the South American country's Movement Toward Socialism government, which brought Evo Morales to power as president in 2005 and to which outgoing President Luis Arce also belongs.
According to preliminary results, Paz Pereira obtained 54.61% of the vote, while his opponent obtained 45.39%. Quiroga acknowledged his defeat at a press conference.
'I want to thank our God'
In his first speech as president-elect, on the evening of Oct. 19, Paz Pereira stated: "I want to thank our God … because he is a blessed God who also gives boldness to make decisions that affect the homeland, that lead to moments like these."
"God, family, and homeland are the foundation of the vision we have regarding our commitment to all of Bolivia, to all Bolivians," he continued.
The president-elect said that "it is with love that the country works out its differences, not with hatred or divisions. It is with the ability to unite all together for the purpose of moving our country forward," encouraging people to avoid "any more 'dirty wars' [government repression] in Bolivia."
Paz Pereira said that "today, since the victory, we extend our hand to govern with all the men and women who care about the country."
"This is not an ideological problem, because we Bolivians know that ideology doesn't put food on the table. What puts food on the table is the right to work, what puts food on the table is strong institutions, what puts food on the table is the just and impartial application of the law, respect for private property, what puts food on the table is having certainty in your future, and that's what we want to work on," the president-elect stated.
Origins and political career
Born in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, on Sept. 22, 1967, Paz Pereira is the son of former Bolivian President Jaime Paz Zamora, historical leader of the now-defunct Revolutionary Left Movement, and Spaniard Carmen Pereira. He was born in Spain during one of the many exiles his father was forced into as a result of his political career.
He is married to María Elena Urquidi Barbery, with whom he has four children: Catalina, Alicia, Paulino, and Elena.
Paz Pereira holds a bachelor's degree in international relations with a minor in economics from American University in Washington, D.C., where he also earned a master's degree in political administration.
He served as mayor of Tarija in southern Bolivia from 2015–2020 and as a senator from 2020–2025.
God's role in his life
Interviewed during the campaign on the Bolivian Christian channel XTO TV, Rodrigo Paz Pereira asserted that God plays a "central" role in his life. After stating that he is Catholic, he emphasized that "every time I see Christ crucified there, I always see the effort, the human sacrifice in that whole process."
"If God has given you anything, it's life. Use it, always be aware of it, care for it," he said, emphasizing that this perspective leads him to consider two aspects: "One is to love God above all things, who gives you this environment; around you and the other has to do with your neighbor, that teaching of respect, of loving your neighbor."
"If you set about looking at all the possible rules or commandments, it's complicated, but if you comply with these two, I believe you have a good relationship within your family.You try to fulfill your relationship with your neighbors, because [in this perspective] your daughter is your neighbor, your wife is your neighbor, that is, they are part of the environment around you. And if you understand this first [relationship], you also understand the larger environment, the green environment, and from [that conceptualization] many proposals within my platform have emerged."
In a statement to the Spanish news agency EFE, Paz Pereira also emphasized that in his native Santiago de Compostela, "I became very devoted to fatherly St. James, who in Bolivia has a very close relationship with rural areas and those who live there."
Bolivian bishops: 'May better days come'
In a statement titled "A New Stage for Bolivia," the Bolivian Bishops' Conference noted that the country's "challenges are great, and we trust that the newly elected government will know how to face them, prioritizing the well-being of all Bolivians."
Among these challenges, the Bolivian bishops listed "attention to families living in poverty, improving access to health care and medicines, education, preferential attention to the most vulnerable sectors, as well as fuel supplies and economic recovery."
Highlighting the "peaceful exercise of democracy" on Sunday, Oct. 19, the bishops noted that "this participation expresses everyone's hope: that better days may come for Bolivia."
The bishops' conference "called on all political and social actors" to calmly accept "the results of the electoral process, respecting the sovereign decision of the Bolivian people, and working together for the good of the country."
"To those who have been elected, we remind you that your term in office must be exercised with ethics, transparency, and a spirit of service, always putting the common good before personal or partisan interests. Do not betray the trust the people have placed in you," the bishops stated.
They also asked all Bolivians to commit "to building a different tomorrow, keeping alive hope and commitment to building better days for Bolivia, mutually respecting each other and reaffirming dialogue as a path to reencountering one another and development, to move our economy forward."
"We entrust the present and future of our beloved Bolivia to the protection of God, Lord of life and history, and to the intercession of our Mother, the Virgin Mary. We ask our Creator to shower his blessings upon our homeland and upon the elected officials, and to inspire all Bolivians to work together for justice, reconciliation, and the progress of the nation," the bishops concluded.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
