In Patamanta, a small town in the heart of the Andean Altiplano, an hour and a half from La Paz, the seat of government, residents donned their finest attire for the occasion: embroidered blouses for women, red ponchos for men. On Wednesday, August 6, Bolivia celebrated the bicentennial of its independence. But spirits ran low in this traditional stronghold of the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS), the left-wing party that has dominated Bolivian politics for two decades. "It is an important date and we are patriots," said Luis Valenciano, a secondary school teacher, as he marched with a flag pin on his jacket. "But there is nothing to celebrate. We have to queue for everything: fuel, flour, oil. And the government [of Luis Arce, in power since November 2020, MAS] acts like everything is fine," he added.

Just days before the elections, in which more than 7.5 million Bolivians are set to vote on Sunday, August 17, to choose a new president, MPs and senators, residents of this province near Lake Titicaca, who are mostly farmers but also miners and small traders, were more worried about their wallets than the lackluster campaign. Many admitted they would not bother voting if it were not compulsory.

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