Bolivians will choose a new president May 3, more than six months after a disputed election sparked violent street protests and the resignation of Evo Morales. Interim leader Jeanine Anez has been overseeing a caretaker government since then, after Morales fled the country for Mexico. The new presidential election will be “the first Sunday of May, I can let you know that much,” said the vice president of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, Oscar Hassenteufel. Once complete, the electoral schedule will include dates for registration of candidates, the campaign timeframe, rules on advertising, and rules on a potential second round. Bolivia has been in turmoil since presidential voting on October 20. Morales’ insistence after 14 years in power that he had been elected to a fourth term in a widely disputed vote prompted massive and violent street protests. On November 10, after losing the army’s backing, Bolivia’s first indigenous president resigned and fled to before moving on to Argentina. Morales, a socialist, told AFP on December 24 that he was forced from power by a US-backed coup d’etat aimed at gaining access to the South American country’s vast lithium resources.
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