Bolivia's Constitutional Breakdown

The attempt to revolutionize Bolivia that began with the election of Evo Morales in 2005 has led to the breakdown of constitutional democracy and the polarization of the country between the poorer, indigenous western highlands and the (slightly) more prosperous, more heavily mestizo, and more market-friendly eastern lowlands (what Bolivians call the media luna or “half-moon”). The trajectory of relative stability and economic growth followed from the 1980s onward now threatens to devolve into constitutional stalemate at best and violent civil conflict at worst.