President Evo Morales will be putting forward constitutional changes, including his ability to run for re-election in a second 5 year term in an upcoming referendum in Bolivia.

This will be the third major referendum held during Morales’ term. Morales is the first Amerindian President of Bolivia and represents the majority population of the western highlands. He has met harsh competition from the wealthy and majority Caucasian population of the eastern lowland states.

Morales has ridden a tide of support from the Amerindian population because of his support to sweeping socialist reform, equal rights and legal reform within the government.

This has resulted in the development of heavy partisanship in a country which is starkly divided by ethnic and economic lines. Morales has argued that this referendum represents an opportunity to strengthen the changes made in the 2006 reforms, and that it would provide opportunity for greater equality and more access to basic services including education, healthcare and clean water.

These reforms if approved will also allow for the government to put caps on the amount of personal land owned as well as reclamation if the land is not deemed to be used in the interest of the Bolivian people. As per usual in Bolivia spirits are running high as the campaigns have run up on the day of the referendum. Although the streets are reported to have stayed quiet in the weeks running up the news agencies on both television and radio have been running what would be deemed extremist adds in North America or Europe.

This referendum is important in gauging the support of the Bolivian people behind Morales who is expected to gain support in the vote, however if his numbers have dropped substantially from the last poles it may afford a rallying cry for the opposition who will be trying to find an anti-Morales candidate for the December election which this reform would call for.

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