WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th November, 2019) The United States has no preferenceS among candidates for the post of the Bolivian president after the resignation of Evo Morales, a� Department of State spokesperson said Monday.
The official told reporters at a news briefing that Washington prioritizes the observance of democratic procedures and stressed that the election of a new president of Bolivia should take place in accordance with the current constitution of the country.
Bolivia's Second Vice Speaker of the Senate Jeanine Anez, who is due to assume interim presidency after Morales resignations, said earlier in the day that new elections must be held by January 22, 2020.
Morales stepped down on Sunday after the national armed forces had urged him to do so amid the ongoing unrest against his re-election win. The army de facto sided with protesters even though Morales pledged to call new elections and reshuffle the electoral board after the preliminary report of the Organization of American States found "grave" irregularities in the vote.
Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico and Nicaragua have described the events in Bolivia, accompanied by violent rallies, attacks on officials, arson incidents and occupation of buildings, as a state coup. Russia has similarly said that the opposition's steps resembled an "orchestrated coup."
