MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Morales 'king' of Bolivia; his two thirds majority in congress open the way to reform the constitution

Bolivia's first indigenous president was re-elected for a third mandate with 61% support

President Evo Morales swept to a third term with 61% of the vote, electoral officials said in confirming the result. The October 12 balloting was a massive vote of support and a strong mandate to expand his reforms which will have a swift legislative discussion since Morales party obtained two thirds of the Legislative Assembly benches.

In effect his Movement to Socialism, MAS, garnered 25 seats in the Senate: he only needed 24 out of 36. Likewise in the Lower House, MAS obtained 88 benches two more than the 86 that make up the two thirds.

In power since 2006 and Bolivia's first indigenous president, Morales earned 37 points more than his closest rival, wealthy cement magnate Samuel Doria Medina who managed 24% of the vote.

Morales will extend his time in office to 14 years, until January 2020, after Bolivia's Supreme Court ruled last year that his first term was exempt from a new constitution adopted in 2009 that imposed a limit of one re-election for sitting presidents.

The new absolute majority in the Legislative assembly mean Morales can rule with no parliamentary resistance and could even reform the Bolivian constitution with no need to consult with the opposition, which fears he could approve the indefinite re-election and thus perpetuate himself in office.

Morales also won in eight of the country's nine districts including Santa Cruz which has always stood up as the main opposition province.

After rising to prominence as a union leader fighting for the rights of the country's coca growers, Morales has brought sweeping changes since taking office in 2006.

His government has nationalized a broad range of industries, including oil, gas, mining, telecommunications and water; rolled out welfare grants for the elderly, children and expectant mothers; and moved to empower previously marginalized groups, among them the indigenous people who account for 75% of the population.

Defying opponents' dire warnings of economic catastrophe, Bolivia, one of the poorest countries in Latin America, has instead seen a boom. The economy grew 6.8% last year and is forecast to grow more than five percent this year, one of the fastest rates in the region.