Andrónico Rodríguez

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In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Rodríguez and the second or maternal family name is Ledezma.

Andrónico Rodríguez
Andrónico Rodriguez en 2019.png
President of the Chamber of Senators
Assumed office
3 November 2020
Vice PresidentLindaura Rasguido (1st)
Rodrigo Paz Pereira (2nd)
Preceded byEva Copa
Senator for Cochabamba
Assumed office
3 November 2020
Serving with and
AlternateEmiliana Dilma Cabrera
Personal details
Born
Andrónico Rodríguez Ledezma

(1988-11-11) 11 November 1988 (age 33)
Sacaba, Cochabmaba, Bolivia
Political partyMovement for Socialism
Parent(s)Carlos Rodríguez Cuéllar
Sinforosa Ledezma Camacho
EducationHigher University of San Simón

Andrónico Rodríguez Ledezma (born 11 November 1988) is a Bolivian political scientist, cocalero, and politician serving as Senator for Cochabamba and President of the Senate of Bolivia since 3 November 2020.[1] In 2018, he was elected Vice President of the Six Coca Federations of the Tropic of Cochabamba and succeeded to the presidency of the union upon the resignation of President Evo Morales in 2019.[2]

Early life and career[]

Andrónico Rodríguez was born on 11 November 1988 in Sacaba, the son of Carlos Rodríguez Cuellar, an important cocalero peasant leader, and Sinforosa Ledesma Camacho, the secretary of minutes in the Manco Kapac union. In 1999, his family moved to Entre Ríos, a coca-growing area of Cochabamba, where Rodríguez completed his secondary studies in 2006. As a child, Rodríguez was active in his father's political life, attending union meetings and debates. Between 2005 and 2006, he performed mandatory pre-military service as a member of the Colonel Ladislao Cabrera 33rd Infantry Army.[3] In 2011, at age 22, he graduated with a degree in political science from the University of San Simón.[4]

Rodríguez entered cocalero politics as the president of the student youth groups, spending two years as the leader of his coca growers union. He spent another two as a member of the Six Coca Federations of the Tropic of Cochabamba. In September 2018, Rodríguez won the vice presidency of the six federations, serving directly under Bolivian President Evo Morales who simultaneously served as leader of the federations.[4]

In the general elections of October 2019, Rodríguez stood as a candidate for senator for Cochabamba as a member of the Movement for Socialism party. His broad appeal and frequent presence next to Morales led him to be seen by many as a possible successor to the president. Rodríguez often appeared in public events next to the president and even hosted the inauguration of Morales' 2019 presidential campaign in Chimore on 18 May.[5] Disputes surrounding the 2019 elections ultimately caused the resignation of Morales and the annulment of the results.

In aftermath of the resignation of Morales on 10 November 2019, Rodríguez called for mobilizations demanding the fulfillment of his mandate until 22 January 2020.

MAS pre-candidate for the 2020 election[]

At the beginning of December 2019, Andrónico Rodríguez, who succeeded Morales as President of the Six Federations, was considered as a possible candidate for the presidency by MAS, along with other party figures.[6][7] Rodríguez turned 30 the day after Morales' resignation, the minimum age to qualify to run for the presidency.

On 15 December, the MAS Youth in the Tropics endorsed Rodríguez as their candidate. Also in December, various social organizations including the six federations, departmental directorates, as well as national and municipal authorities, participated in a meeting in Cliza where "The support for the candidacy of the Andrónico binomial [..., was] unanimously determined". Despite Morales himself identifying Rodríguez as the leader of his own social base, the ex-president ultimately decided that he was "too young to be a candidate for the presidency".[8] Despite the fact Rodríguez had not been definitively nominated as a presidential candidate for MAS, voting intention polls indicated a 23% lead for him over former president Carlos Mesa at 21%.[9]

On 18 January 2021, Rodríguez was officially announced as a pre-candidate for the vice presidency, serving on a ticket with former foreign minister David Choquehuanca.[10] Ultimately, however, former minister of economy Luis Arce was nominated as the MAS presidential candidate with Choquehuanca has his running mate.

President of the Senate (2020–present)[]

In the 18 October general elections, Rodríguez was elected Senator for Cochabamba. He took office on 3 November 2020, also succeeding Evo Copa as President of the Senate through the unanimous consensus at a MAS meeting in Huajchilla, south of La Paz.[11][12] As President of the Senate, he called for unity among Bolivians stating, "We have to enter into a reconciliation process".[13] On 7 December, Rodríguez, along with former president Evo Morales, participated in the reopening of the Bolivian embassy in Venezuela following the restoration of diplomatic relations.[14]

Following controversy within MAS surrounding the choosing of candidates for the 2021 regional elections, Rodríguez suggested that in future electoral processes the party should consider holding primary elections rather than allowing party leadership to appoint candidates directly. "I think we need other modalities or methods of election, it is necessarily important to promote the primaries within the MAS because of the amount of militants it currently has."[15] On 13 April 2021, following the defeat of MAS in all four runoff gubernatorial elections which brought the party to its lowest regional control since 2006, Rodríguez reiterated his call for the organization of primaries in future elections.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ "Andrónico Rodríguez Ledezma". Cámara de Senadores (in Spanish). 16 October 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  2. ^ "Andrónico anuncia que Evo retomará la dirigencia de las Seis Federaciones del Trópico y del MAS". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  3. ^ "Conozca el Joven que lidera la Resistencia en Bolivia: Andronico Rodríguez". Motor Economico. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Quién es el cocalero de 29 años que prepara Evo Morales para su sucesión". infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Bolivia. Andronico Rodríguez: joven dirigente cocalero candidato a Senador". Resumen Latinoamericano (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  6. ^ "Andrónico, dos exministros y el "Gringo" Gonzales figuran como posibles candidatos del MAS". Correo del Sur (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  7. ^ "¿Andrónico, candidato a la presidencia?". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  8. ^ "Andrónico Rodríguez cumplió 30 años y ya es presidenciable". Opinión Bolivia (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  9. ^ "Andrónico y Mesa lideran intención de voto; Camacho y Pumari caen". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  10. ^ "Evo Morales's party names election runners for Bolivian vote". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  11. ^ "El MAS determina que Andrónico Rodríguez sea el nuevo presidente del Senado". Portal de noticias vea.global (in Spanish). 30 October 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Andrónico Rodríguez: "Es tiempo de curar las heridas y tomar en cuenta a la oposición"". Opinión Bolivia (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  13. ^ "Andrónico Rodríguez hace eco del llamado a la reconciliación". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  14. ^ "Evo y Andrónico asisten a reapertura de la Embajada de Bolivia en Venezuela". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  15. ^ "Andrónico sugiere elecciones primarias al interior del MAS para futuras elecciones". Opinión Bolivia (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  16. ^ "Tras el balotaje, Rodríguez sugiere que el MAS defina candidatos en primarias". www.paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 April 2021.
Political offices
Preceded by President of the Senate
2020–present 		Incumbent
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