EVO MORALES ARRIVES TO A NEWS CONFERENCE
(Photo : Reuters )

In the upcoming elections in the country, Evo Morales, the former Bolivian president who fled his country in November in the midst of violent protests over his attempt to remain in power, will try to run for the Senate. Having reached the constitutional cap of two terms in office, Morales can not run for the presidency again.

The declaration is only the latest sign that while living in exile in Argentina and facing an arrest warrant issued by Bolivia's interim government, Morales plans to play an active role in Bolivian politics.

On Thursday, the former president was disqualified from running for a Senate seat in May's election by Bolivia's Supreme Electoral Tribunal court claiming he didn't meet the requirements of citizenship since he is no longer living in Bolivia.

Candidates are expected to be Bolivian citizens and Morales has taken refuge in Argentina while facing charges in Bolivia related to the allegedly unfair election in October, in which he won a fourth consecutive term in office. He denied that there was voting fraud and called a coup for his ouster that came in the midst of military pressure.

The Supreme Electoral Court said the candidacy of Morales lacked the necessary documents but it said that the presidential candidate of his Movement for Socialism party, Luis Arce, fulfilled the qualification requirements.

Tribunal head Salvador Romero said the decision can not be appealed to the electoral board at a news conference, although he added that Morales "can pursue any judicial avenues that he sees as necessary."

Morales tweeted that the decision against him was "a blow to democracy" and that court members "knew" he was meeting the requirements of being a candidate. His remarks came hours after the election body declared on Thursday its decision to block him from running as a candidate.

Morales also claimed in a tweet earlier this week that the Áñez government has "destroyed" the economic and social welfare policies he put in place during his nearly 14 years as president in only three months in office. 

He also stated in the following tweet that the government has blocked major projects that had budgeted funding such as the Nuclear Research Center, whose investment came from the TGN, so it did not require ALP approval.

Morales may Challenge Rejection of Senate Bid

During an interview, Morales' lawyer Raul Gustavo Ferreyra told reporters that Morales may appeal the decision of the Bolivian Supreme Electoral Tribunal to reject his bid for the Senate elections on international organizations.

Ferreyra said last Friday that in all national and international organizations, they urged Morales to seek the protection of his right to run for the Senate.

Morales was forced to leave the country for fear of his life, according to the prosecutor, which rendered the TSE decision null and void on his application to the Senate and not in accordance with international law.

Presidential candidates will need either a plurality of 40 percent of the vote and a 10 percent advantage over the second-place candidate to win in the first round on May 3.