Pubdate: Mon, 19 Dec 2005 Source: Houston Chronicle (TX) Copyright: 2005 Houston Chronicle Publishing Company Division, Hearst Newspaper Contact: http://www.chron.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/198 Author: John Otis, South America Bureau Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) MORALES' OPPONENT CONCEDES BOLIVIAN ELECTION Official Results Of The Presidential Race Aren't Known LA PAZ, BOLIVIA - Leftist Evo Morales, a fierce critic of Washington who campaigned on a platform of radical change, seemed headed for a huge victory in Bolivia's presidential contest Sunday after his main opponent conceded defeat. According to "quick counts," or ballot samplings, commissioned by four Bolivian TV stations, Morales received about 51 percent of the vote compared with about 30 percent for former President Jorge Quiroga, who ran second. "We have a responsibility to change Bolivia's history," Morales -- who has vowed to roll back the U.S.-funded drug war here and hike taxes on foreign energy companies -- said in a rousing victory speech. "We must get rid of the neo-liberal (economic) model and our status as a colony." Morales, 46, needed more than 50 percent of the vote in the eight-candidate race to avoid throwing the election to Congress, which would select a winner between the top two vote-getters. Official government results are not expected until at least today. If they show Morales did not receive more than half the vote, Congress would by law have to pick a victor. If the tallies do confirm a majority, Morales will be sworn in Jan. 22 as the nation's first Indian president. Since Bolivia returned to democracy in 1982, no presidential election has been decided in the first round. Most polls predicted a tighter race between Morales and Quiroga that would have gone to a runoff in Congress. A Morales victory would mean that the Bush administration will have to deal with another fiery leftist in Latin America, one who admires Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and Cuba's Fidel Castro and takes a dim view of free market capitalism. "If (the U.S.) wants relations, welcome. But we say 'no' to a relationship of submission," Morales said after casting his ballot in a town in Bolivia's Chapare jungle, where he got his start in politics 20 years ago as a union leader for the region's growers of coca, which is chewed by local Indians but can also be turned into cocaine. Son of poor Indians Backed by many of the nation's farmers, miners and the majority indigenous population, Morales -- the son of poor Aymara Indians -- is a strong critic of economic globalization, which he blames for the nation's 64 percent poverty rate. He promises to rip up existing contracts for foreign energy companies operating here and negotiate more lucrative deals for the Bolivian government. And he plans to halt a U.S.-funded campaign to eradicate Bolivia's vast coca fields, which have made the country the world's third-leading producer of cocaine. Emotional congratulations "I challenge the United States to create a real alliance against narcotrafficking" said Morales, who wants to produce and export coca products, such as tea, but promises to crack down on cocaine producers and drug lords. Quiroga, a 45-year-old Texas A&M graduate favored by many within the country's upper class, pledged to stay the course with Bolivia's free market economy and seek more foreign investment for the nation's vital oil and natural gas industries. But Quiroga was closely allied with traditional political parties, which have been disgraced by Bolivia's recent political and economic troubles. "I congratulate Evo Morales," Quiroga said in an emotional concession speech at a hotel ballroom in La Paz, the Bolivian capital. The election was designed to bring an end to more than three years of turmoil in South America's poorest nation. Angry over government corruption and plans to export natural gas from a country where many of the poor have no gas service in their homes, protesters have forced out two presidents over the past two years. Interim President Eduardo Rodriguez moved up the 2007 general elections to Sunday. Besides president and vice president, Bolivians voted for 27 senators, 130 congressional deputies and nine state governors. "Evo is from a humble background, and that's important, because we poor people need help," said Raul Vertiz, as he waited to vote at an elementary school in the La Paz suburb of El Alto. "We need jobs." Richard Quiroga, a 34-year-old engineer added: "We need revolutionary change." A double-digit victory would mean that Morales may be able to avoid the fate of several past presidents, who struggled to rule with weak popular mandates because they failed to win a majority in the first round and were elected by Congress. His Movement Toward Socialism party, polled better than expected in congressional elections and could end up with a majority, according to the exit polls. Still, it's unclear how much Morales will be able to accomplish. Huge expectations About one-fifth of the country's foreign aid comes from Washington, which could force Morales to toe a more moderate line and maintain decent relations with the Bush administration. If he pushes too hard on foreign energy companies, experts say, few international firms will invest in Bolivia. "The Indians and the workers will want everything done right away. They see in Evo the opportunity to improve their lives," said Jimena Costa, a political analyst in La Paz. "They are going to ask him for everything, but that will be impossible." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom