| Country name | conventional long form: Plurinational State of Bolivia conventional short form: Bolivia local long form: Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia local short form: Bolivia etymology: the country is named after Simon BOLIVAR, a 19th-century leader in the South American wars for independence |
| Government type | presidential republic |
| Capital | name: La Paz (administrative capital); Sucre (constitutional [legislative and judicial] capital) geographic coordinates: 16 30 S, 68 09 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: La Paz is a shortening of the original name of the city, Nuestra Senora de La Paz (Our Lady of Peace); Sucre is named after Antonio Jose de Sucre (1795-1830), military hero in the independence struggle from Spain and the second president of Bolivia note: at approximately 3,630 m above sea level, La Paz's elevation makes it the highest capital city in the world |
| Administrative divisions | 9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Beni, Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija |
| Independence | 6 August 1825 (from Spain) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 6 August (1825) |
| Constitution | history: many previous; latest drafted 6 August 2006 to 9 December 2008, approved by referendum 25 January 2009, effective 7 February 2009 amendments: proposed through public petition by at least 20% of voters or by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly; passage requires approval by at least two-thirds majority vote of the total membership of the Assembly and approval in a referendum; amended 2013 |
| Legal system | civil law system with influences from Roman, Spanish, canon (religious), French, and indigenous law |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: yes citizenship by descent only: yes dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 3 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora (since 8 November 2020); Vice President David CHOQUEHUANCA Cespedes (since 8 November 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora (since 8 November 2020); Vice President David CHOQUEHUANCA Cespedes (since 8 November 2020) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections/appointments: president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot one of 3 ways: candidate wins at least 50% of the vote, or at least 40% of the vote and 10% more than the next highest candidate; otherwise a second round is held and the winner determined by simple majority vote; president and vice president are elected by majority vote to serve a 5-year term; no term limits (changed from two consecutive term limit by Constitutional Court in late 2017); election last held on 18 October 2020 (next to be held in October 2025) election results: 2020: Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora elected president; percent of vote - Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora (MAS) 55.1%; Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert (CC) 28.8%; Luis Fernando CAMACHO Vaca (Creemos) 14%; other 2.1% 2018: Juan Evo MORALES Ayma reelected president; percent of vote - Juan Evo MORALES Ayma (MAS) 61%; Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana (UN) 24.5%; Jorge QUIROGA Ramirez (POC) 9.1%; other 5.4%; note - MORALES resigned from office on 10 November 2019 over alleged election rigging; resignations of all his constitutionally designated successors followed, including the Vice President, President of the Senate, President of the Chamber of Deputies, and First Vice President of the Senate, leaving the Second Vice President of the Senate, Jeanine ANEZ Chavez, the highest-ranking official still in office; her appointment to the presidency was endorsed by Bolivia's Constitutional Court, and she served as interim president until the inauguration of Luis Alberto ARCE Catacora, winner of the 18 October 2020 presidential election |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Plurinational Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa Plurinacional consists of: Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (36 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; 70 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 53 directly elected in single-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote, and 7 (apportioned to non-contiguous, rural areas in 7 of the 9 states) directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: Chamber of Senators - last held on 18 October 2020 (next to be held in 2025) Chamber of Deputies - last held on 18 October 2020 (next to be held in 2025) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MAS 21, ACC 11, Creemos 4; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MAS 75, ACC 39, Creemos 16 |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo de Justicia (consists of 12 judges or ministros organized into civil, penal, social, and administrative chambers); Plurinational Constitutional Tribunal (consists of 7 primary and 7 alternate magistrates); Plurinational Electoral Organ (consists of 7 members and 6 alternates); National Agro-Environment Court (consists of 5 primary and 5 alternate judges; Council of the Judiciary (consists of 3 primary and 3 alternate judges) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court, Plurinational Constitutional Tribunal, National Agro-Environmental Court, and Council of the Judiciary candidates pre-selected by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly and elected by direct popular vote; judges elected for 6-year terms; Plurinational Electoral Organ judges appointed - 6 by the Legislative Assembly and 1 by the president of the republic; members serve single 6-year terms subordinate courts: National Electoral Court; District Courts (in each of the 9 administrative departments); agro-environmental lower courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez] Community Citizen Alliance or ACC [Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert] Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Juan Evo MORALES Ayma] National Unity or UN [Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana] Social Democrat Movement or MDS [Ruben COSTAS Aguilera] We Believe or Creemos [Luis Fernando CAMACHO Vaca] note: the Democrat Unity Coalition or UD [Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana] was a coalition comprised of several of the largest opposition parties participating in the 2014 election, which included the Democrats (MDS), National Unity Front (UN), and Without Fear Movement |
| International organization participation | CAN, CD, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Alejandro Roberto BILBAO LA VIEJA RUIZ, First Secretary (since 6 July 2021) chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410 FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712 email address and website: embolivia.wdc@gmail.com consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Maple Grove (MN), Miami, New York, Washington, DC note: in September 2008, the US expelled the Bolivian ambassador to the US in reciprocity for Bolivia expelling the US ambassador to Bolivia; in November 2019, the interim Bolivian Government names Oscar SERRATE Cuellar as its temporary special representative to the US |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Charisse PHILLIPS (since August 2020) embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, La Paz mailing address: 3220 La Paz Place, Washington DC 20512-3220 telephone: [591] (2) 216-8000 FAX: [591] (2) 216-8111 email address and website: ConsularLaPazACS@state.gov https://bo.usembassy.gov/ note: in September 2008, the Bolivian Government expelled the US Ambassador to Bolivia, Philip GOLDBERG, and both countries have yet to reinstate their ambassadors |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band; red stands for bravery and the blood of national heroes, yellow for the nation's mineral resources, and green for the fertility of the land note: similar to the flag of Ghana, which has a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; in 2009, a presidential decree made it mandatory for a so-called wiphala - a square, multi-colored flag representing the country's indigenous peoples - to be used alongside the traditional flag |
| National symbol(s) | llama, Andean condor, two national flowers: the cantuta and the patuju; national colors: red, yellow, green |
| National anthem | name: "Cancion Patriotica" (Patriotic Song) lyrics/music: Jose Ignacio de SANJINES/Leopoldo Benedetto VINCENTI note: adopted 1852 |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
