Cerca de 8.000 bolivianos acudirán a las urnas este domingo 22 de marzo para participar en las elecciones autonómicas y elegir a las principales autoridades regionales. La jornada electoral, convocada por el Tribunal Supremo Electoral, se desarrollará de manera simultánea en los nueve departamentos del país.

En estos comicios se renovarán gobernadores, asambleístas departamentales, alcaldes y concejales, además de autoridades regionales e indígenas, en lo que constituye uno de los procesos más amplios del sistema democrático boliviano. En total, están en disputa más de 5.000 cargos públicos con un récord histórico de candidatos: hay más de 34.000 inscritos.

De igual forma, diversas organizaciones políticas participan en la contienda, reflejando la pluralidad del escenario político boliviano. Entre ellas, está inscrita la oficialista Alianza Patria, integrada, entre otros frentes, por el recién resucitado Movimiento de la Izquierda Revolucionaria (MIR), del expresidente Jaime Paz Zamora (1989-1993), padre del actual mandatario Rodrigo Paz.

Patria ha inscrito candidatos en algunas regiones, pero ninguno ha conseguido hasta ahora descollar en las encuestas, por lo que los resultados de la votación pueden ser un termómetro del peso real que tiene a nivel regional el respaldo del presidente.

Estas elecciones representan un momento clave en la configuración del poder territorial en Bolivia. Las plazas más disputadas son las que integran el denominado “eje central”: La Paz, Cochabamba y Santa Cruz, que concentran tanto recursos como población.

En Santa Cruz, los candidatos que disputan con mayor ventaja la Gobernación según las encuestas son el actual gobernador Luis Fernando Camacho, que busca la reelección, y el emprendedor tech y excandidato a vicepresidente Juan Pablo Velasco. La definición de esta votación tiene implicancias importantes por el peso demográfico, político y económico de Santa Cruz, pero también por la relación de los principales candidatos con el Gobierno: Camacho es aliado del presidente Paz, mientras que Velasco es parte de la principal fuerza de oposición a nivel nacional.

Otro cargo relevante en el contexto político actual es el de la gobernación de Cochabamba, donde el candidato con mayor ventaja en los sondeos es uno de los discípulos del expresidente Evo Morales: el dirigente cocalero Leonardo Loza. El analista político Carlos Saavedra afirma que “el verdadero candidato ahí es Evo” y agrega que, aunque el expresidente respalda a otros postulantes para otras instancias, “ninguna candidatura es tan preponderante y significativa como la de Loza”.

Por otro lado, algunas regiones han visto reaparecer liderazgos que habían estado fuera de la arena política en los últimos años, como el exalcalde de La Paz, Luis Revilla, que disputa la Gobernación luego de haber estado en el exilio por cinco años; o la exalcaldesa de Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Angélica Sosa, que volvió a la palestra luego de salir de prisión acusada de múltiples casos de corrupción.

Las elecciones se desarrollan en un contexto económico complejo y en medio de una alta expectativa por la redistribución de recursos públicos, debido a que la administración de Rodrigo Paz ha prometido poner en marcha un modelo denominado “50/50” con el que busca profundizar la descentralización y la autonomía regional.

Según informó el Órgano Electoral, los resultados preliminares se conocerán alrededor de las 21:00, hora local. El único cargo para el que la legislación incluye el balotaje es el de gobernador: si ninguno de los postulantes alcanza la mayoría requerida (50% de los votos o más de 40% con una ventaja de al menos 10% respecto al segundo), habrá una nueva votación en abril.

Con la posesión de las autoridades electas prevista para mayo, se terminará de configurar el mapa político de Bolivia para el próximo quinquenio.

A devastated father in Iceland says he was stripped of his parental rights after speaking out against his 11-year-old autistic son’s sex change — a case that has drawn international attention, including from billionaire Elon Musk — as he accuses the courts of prioritizing progressive ideology over a parent’s right to protect their child.

Alexandre Rocha, a French national who has lived in Iceland for 25 years, lost custody to the child’s mother in December and told Fox News Digital he believes the judge ruled against him because he questioned the long-term impacts of puberty blockers and hormone therapies.

«It should be a crime,» Rocha said of the medical interventions. «You are molesting kids, castrating a boy, like in the case of my kid. This shouldn’t happen. This is an ideology that has no place for kids.»

He argued that his then-10-year-old — whose worldview is shaped by video games like Minecraft and Roblox — could not comprehend the permanent consequences of sex reassignment.

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«Naturally, every kid [after a separation and autism diagnosis] will have a mental challenge,» Rocha said. «The transition is a happy place. They do feel validated, they like the attention… To me, the concern is the long-term. Will they still be happy in four years from now, or six years, from having blockers and having more hormones? Is it really fixing what is underlying — the mental challenge or difficulty, whatever they’re going through?»

Despite his child being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder just eight months ago, Rocha said the court and medical professionals «slightly passed over» the diagnosis during the trial. 

He noted that children on the autism spectrum often struggle with feeling «right in their skin» or «wanting to be something else,» adding that his child sometimes prefers to be a cat — wearing a tail or cat ears.

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Alexandre Rocha is pictured in this undated photo with his son. (Photo courtesy of Alexandre Rocha)

However, when he raised those concerns in court, Rocha said an Icelandic endocrinologist «totally dismissed» him under oath, guaranteeing the hormone drugs posed «no problem» and refusing to examine underlying mental health factors. 

Now cut out of the medical decision-making process, Rocha said he fears what treatment his son may be receiving without his knowledge.

«It could very well be that he is being treated with hormones and I don’t know anything about it,» he said.

Rocha added that the child’s mother is pushing a «stronger ideology than ever,» saying he had to use advanced artificial intelligence (AI) program ChatGPT to understand terms like «deadname,» which refers to a person’s birth name before a sex change.

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Alexandre Rocha is pictured in this undated photo with his son. (Photo courtesy of Alexandre Rocha)

«I can’t support this kind of speech. This, to me, is diabolical. It’s beyond love,» he said. «When you talk about a kid, you can’t talk about death. It just doesn’t make sense to me.»

Rocha said he was notified in February that the child’s mother formally changed his son’s name to a female name, «meaning his ID will now clearly state he is a girl.»

The father said he believes the court’s ruling was not about his child’s welfare, but rather a coordinated effort to silence dissent.

«It is to control parents. It is to control me,» he said. «It is to silence me. It is to give all power to this ideology.»

Rocha’s story has garnered international attention and recently caught Musk’s eye. 

Rocha’s story recently caught the attention of Elon Musk. (Getty Images)

The Tesla CEO has been outspoken about transgender issues after revealing his son, Xavier, transitioned to a female and now goes by the name Vivian Jenna Wilson.

Musk said he was «essentially tricked» into giving consent for Wilson to go on puberty blockers, before he had «any understanding of what was going on.»

In response to a post about Rocha’s story on popular X account @libsoftiktok, Musk said, «The woke mind virus even affects Iceland.»

Rocha said he was «very surprised and honored» that Musk shared his story.

«I think we have a common fight going on,» he said. «Because at the end of the day, we’re all parents, no matter the borders or nationalities.»

Musk did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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Beyond politics, Rocha said he misses everyday moments with his son, who he said he hasn’t seen since January.

«I miss story time at night and cooking together,» he said, noting how much he enjoyed sharing 1990s Steven Spielberg movies like «Jurassic Park» with his son. 

Rocha recently requested daily fines against the child’s mother for obstructing his court-ordered visitation rights. 

The mother denied intentionally blocking the visits, claiming the child refuses to attend because Rocha rejects his transgender identity and does not use his new name, according to court documents.

Rocha provided a witness affidavit alleging their last visitation went smoothly and that the child appeared happy and secure in his presence.

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Alexandre Rocha is pictured in this undated photo with his grandmother and his son. (Photo courtesy of Alexandre Rocha)

He recalled a recent visit where his son said he «missed it, to be with grandma and my sister.»

«When you don’t know what’s happening on the other side, as a parent, you get really worried,» Rocha said. «We are slowly drifting apart, and that’s a very sad outcome of this.»

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Despite pressure to stay quiet, Rocha urged other parents to trust their «instincts,» speak up and seek professional guidance.

«I’m here for my kid and for his future,» he said. «That’s the only thing I care about. I am campaigning for him, for his future.»

The child’s mother could not immediately be reached by Fox News Digital for comment. 

EXCLUSIVE – Former Vice President Mike Pence says his fight to keep the Republican Party from drifting too far from its conservative roots and principles, amid a rise of populism in the GOP and big government creep in President Donald Trump’s second administration, is «the calling of my life right now.»

And Pence takes issue with the conventional wisdom that Trump, since he first won the White House a decade ago, has upended and completely transformed the Republican Party.

«I’m convinced that while President Trump has changed some aspects of the agenda of the Republican Party, he hasn’t really changed the Republican Party,» Pence argued in an exclusive interview this past week with Fox News Digital, a couple of months ahead of the release of a new book promoting the conservative agenda.

Sitting in his Washington, D.C., office at Advancing American Freedom, his policy and advocacy organization that has been expanding in recent months, the former vice president emphasized, «We intend to be a voice for what conservatives believe and have always believed, and that’s fiscal responsibility, traditional values, strong defense and American leadership.»

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Pence is a former congressman and Indiana governor who served as vice president during Trump’s first term in office before breaking with his boss amid the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol as he oversaw congressional certification of the 2020 election results.

The former vice president gave a thumbs up to some of what Trump’s accomplished in his second term.

«I’ve been very proud of the fact of what this administration accomplished in securing our border. I was pleased that the administration turned aside from those that were talking about raising taxes on top marginal earners. They extended all the Trump Pence tax cuts,» he highlighted.

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But Pence took issue with the second Trump administration for «embracing more big government programs and solutions, price controls on pharmaceuticals and credit companies, taking a position in private companies, the nationalization trend that has emerged, as well as marginalizing the right to life in so many ways and ignoring the scourge of mail order abortion pills around the country.»

«I am hopeful those advising the president are reminding him that it… was the conservative agenda that we governed on in our four years…that led to great prosperity for American families, for our economy and for strength in the world,» Pence said.

But the former vice president warned that «the Republican Party today is experiencing a scourge of some ‘-isms.’ We’ve seen protectionism show itself in unilateral tariffs that the Supreme Court of the United States recently turned back. We’ve seen some voices of isolationism that question our support for Israel, that would leave allies like Ukraine defend for themselves.»

And Pence added, «I think that the on the fringe and on the margins, voices of antisemitism in the party all need to be confronted, because none of those things represent what conservatives believe.»

But many Republicans would take issue with the former vice president’s argument that Trump hasn’t transformed the GOP.

«Donald Trump has tremendously altered the make-up of the Republican Party and the issues that it focuses on,» veteran GOP strategist and communicator Ryan Williams told Fox News Digital.

Williams emphasized that Trump «has altered the voter base of the Republican Party» and taken «the values and trajectory of this party in a different direction… It’s never going back to the way it was before.»

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While not aiming to return the party to its pre-Trump image, Pence said his mission is to remind people that Republicans believe in a strong national defense of American leadership in the world. We believe in free market economics and limited fiscally responsible government. We believe in the right to life and traditional values.»

«It’s been those principles that have guided our party for more than a half a century and have been to the betterment of the American people,» he added.

Pence said his hope is that «we’ll see not only this administration hew back to our roots of conservatism, but that we’ll see candidates for the House and Senate and statehouse around the country come back to those core conservative principles.»

Republicans are battling stiff political headwinds as the party in power in the nation’s capital traditionally loses seats in the midterm elections, and a rough political climate fueled by economic concerns amid persistent inflation and Trump’s underwater approval ratings.

But Pence said that pushing a conservative platform is «not only a pathway toward American prosperity and the vitality of freedom, but it’s also a winning agenda.»

Likely boosting the former vice president’s push will be his new book, «What Conservatives Believe: Rediscovering the Conservative Conscience,» which is expected to release in June.

Pence ran on a traditional conservative platform, framing the future of the Republican Party against what he called the rise of «populism» in the party, as he bid for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, as part of a large field that unsuccessfully challenged Trump.

Pence formally announced his run for president in Ankeny, Iowa, on June 5, 2023. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

While Pence, who became the first running mate in over 80 years to run against their former boss, regularly campaigned in the crucial early-voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, his White House bid never took off.

Struggling in the polls and with fundraising, he suspended his campaign just four and a half months after launching it.

«It was clear to me that there’s a portion of the Republican Party today that’s being drawn aside by the siren song of populism unmoored to conservative principles. I spoke out against that as a candidate. Our foundation, Advancing American Freedom, has been championing that conservative agenda and will continue to,» Pence noted.

The offices Advancing American Freedom, the policy and advocacy organization founded by former Vice President Mike Pence, in Washington, D.C., on March 18, 2026. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

Asked if there’s another White House run in his future, Pence didn’t rule anything out.

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«I will tell you, I’m not a long-term planner,» he answered. «We’ll let the future take care of itself.»

But he added, «For me, for my family, it really is all about the issues and values that first drew me to the Republican Party. Those are conservative values. And reminding our party and sharing with people across the country what conservatives believe and why it will make America stronger and more prosperous is really the calling of my time.»