The South African Civil Society Information Service

Evo Morales Wins Third Term as President of Bolivia Proving that Socialism Doesn't Damage Economies

15 Oct 2014

According to this CCTV America report, unofficial election results this week indicate that Bolivian president Evo Morales has won a third term. According to exit polls, he got about 60% of the vote. His closest opponent, Samuel Doria Medina, received just 25%.

The government's economic stewardship as well as its dedication to spreading the benefits of the country's natural gas and mineral wealth to the poor has been key to Morales' re-election.

At the same time the Wall Street Journal reports that Bolivia has clocked an annual economic growth rate of five percent. Morales’ economic measures have even won praise from unlikely quarters such as the IMF and World Bank.

Writing for the Guardian, Ellie Mae O'Hagan argues, “Evo Morales has proved that socialism doesn’t damage economies.” She says:

“Morales has defied the conventional wisdom that says left-wing policies damage economic growth, that working-class people can’t run successful economies, and that politics can’t be transformative – and he’s done all of this in the face of enormous political pressure from the IMF, the international business community and the US government. In the success of Morales, important political lessons can be found – and perhaps we could all do with learning them.”

Meanwhile “The United Nation reports that Bolivia has the highest rate of poverty reduction in Latin America,” writes Benjamin Dangl for Al Jazeera.

Editor's Note: Watch Evo Morales play soccer against ex-Real Madrid stars courtesy Ruptly TV.

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