(16 Oct 2019) Clashes between police and supporters of President Evo Morales erupted Tuesday night in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz.
A group of protesters gathered on a main avenue and hurled rocks at the police who, in turn, fired tear gas at them.
Video images captured the moment when another group of Morales supporters attacked a car belonging to a supporter of presidential candidate and Morales opponent Carlos Mesa, surrounding it as they threw rocks and kicked it.
The man had been flying a flag with the Mesa campaign color blue from the back of his vehicle when the attack occurred.
An unknown number of people were arrested by the authorities as continued tension and unrest simmers as the Sunday vote approaches.
A poll by the Universidad Mayor de San Andres and other academic and civil organizations forecasts that Morales will get 32% of the vote in the first round, while his closest rival, former President Carlos Mesa, could garner about 27% of the vote. The result would force a run-off election.
To avoid a runoff and win outright in Bolivia, a candidate must get 50% of the votes plus one or get 40% and finish 10 percentage points ahead of the nearest challenger.
Mesa, of the Citizen Community alliance, could then win in the second round with 35.8% versus 35.5% for Morales, according to the October 4-6 poll, which surveyed 14,420 people. The margin of error was 2.8%.
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