Bolivia’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal said preliminary results from the 17 August general election send centrist senator Rodrigo Paz of the Christian Democratic Party and conservative ex-president Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga of the Free Alliance to an unprecedented presidential runoff on 19 October. Neither candidate met the 40 % threshold with a 10-point margin required for an outright win. With 92 % of tally sheets processed, Paz led with about 32 %, Quiroga followed at roughly 27 %, and businessman Samuel Doria Medina trailed at 20 %. The ruling Movement for Socialism (MAS) collapsed to just over 3 % of the vote, its worst showing in two decades, formally ending the left-wing party’s near-continuous hold on the presidency since 2006. Nearly eight million Bolivians were eligible to vote. International observer missions from the EU and the Organization of American States reported a calm, well-run poll, while the electoral authority confirmed no major incidents. Null and blank ballots reached a record 19 %, after former president Evo Morales—barred from running—urged supporters to spoil their votes. The result ushers in a contest between two market-friendly figures who promise austere economic remedies amid Bolivia’s deepest financial stress in a generation. Annual inflation has climbed above 20 %, fuel and dollar shortages persist, and credit-rating agencies have warned about dwindling foreign-exchange reserves. Both finalists pledge tighter fiscal policy and warmer ties with Washington. Official results are due within a week, but the tribunal said the trend is irreversible. The victor of the 19 October ballot will take office on 8 November for a five-year term and will face the immediate task of stabilising an economy battered by soaring prices, depleted reserves and eroding public trust in state institutions.