The 3rd Plurinational Legislative Assembly of Bolivia (; ALP) was a meeting of the legislative branch of the Bolivian government, composed of the Chamber of Senators and the Chamber of Deputies. It convened in La Paz on 3 November 2020, during the final week of Jeanine Áñez's presidency, and ended on 6 November 2025. It meet during all five years of Luis Arce's presidency.
The 2020 general elections decided control of both chambers. In both the Chamber of Deputies and Senate, the Movement for Socialism retained its majority—albeit reduced from the two-thirds supermajority from the . This assembly marks the first time women make up the majority of the legislature as a whole at 51.9 percent of parliamentarians. In the Senate, women make up the absolute majority at 55.5 percent of senators, while in the Chamber of Deputies, they reach near gender parity at 46.9 percent of deputies.
This legislature has been characterized by frequent inter-party conflicts and quarrels. The ruling Movement for Socialism failed to attain a supermajority in either chamber—as it had done in the previous assemblies—granting the opposition a higher degree of discretion over decisions requiring the support of two-thirds of legislators. However, amendments to the regulations of both chambers approved by the preceding legislature shortly before this assembly's formal installation abrogated the two-thirds requirement for numerous parliamentary procedures, leading political analysts to note the effective neutralization of the opposition's ability to operate. Subsequent disputes and accusations by the opposition of abuse of parliamentary procedure purportedly perpetrated by the ruling party have resulted in disorderly behavior and even physical violence during legislative sessions regarding the election of members to commissions and the passage of controversial bills.
History Two-thirds controversy Though the Movement for Socialism (MAS-IPSP) achieved a first-round victory in the 2020 general elections, winning absolute majorities in both the Senate—nineteen seats—and Chamber of Deputies—sixty-six seats—the party fell just shy of attaining a supermajority of two-thirds of the legislators in either chamber, as it had done in the two previous legislative terms. In the Senate, the MAS won twenty-one seats, three short of the twenty-four necessary to achieve a two-thirds majority in that chamber, and in the lower house, it won seventy-five seats; eighty-seven deputies are required to reach a supermajority in the Chamber of Deputies, leaving the MAS twelve seats short. In total, of the 166 seats making up both chambers, the MAS held ninety-six, leaving it fourteen behind of the 110 votes necessary to attain two-thirds in a plenary session. As a result, the MAS was placed in a situation in which it would be forced to negotiate with the opposition on matters requiring two-thirds of the assembly's support, a fact that had not been the case for over a decade, since the opening of the 2010–2015 legislature in January 2010. Political Scientist Franklin Pareja noted that, without two-thirds, the MAS would no longer be able to circumvent legislative debate and pass laws without discussing with the opposition, as it had grown accustomed to doing in previous years. For Pareja, this would hopefully provide for a "healthier" legislature.
In this context, a major controversy arose when on 27 and 28 October 2020, both chambers in the outgoing assembly used the final hours of their term to amend the articles of their general regulations, eliminating the two-thirds threshold for measures such as the modification of parliamentary committees, the agenda for sessions, promotions of certain public and military officials, and the appointment of ambassadors, reducing the requirement to a simple majority. However, measures requiring two-thirds of both chambers as established by the Constitution, such as the appointment of the prosecutor general, the ombudsman, the comptroller, or members of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, remained unchanged.
Outgoing Senator (MAS) explained the new rules as "an administrative change" meant to push aside "obstacles" to Luis Arce's mandate. For his part, President-elect Arce endorsed the move, stating that "what our Assembly has done is maintain legality... and there should be no concern". Nonetheless, the opposition denounced the change. Outgoing Deputy Shirley Franco called it "an affront to democracy. They eliminate the two-thirds to nullify the opposition". At the same time, Carlos Mesa, leader of Civic Community (CC), decried the rule change as an "unacceptable and illegitimate maneuver". Similarly, Creemos leader Luis Fernando Camacho characterized the regulatory amendment as an "outrage", stating: "the MAS will never leave behind its dictatorial impulse". Newspaper Página Siete reported that, in this way, "[the] MAS [has] neutralize[d] the opposition for five years", primarily due to the fact that the ruling party was now capable of closing legislative debate by a simple majority. Political analyst Williams Bascopé also noted that the MAS' ability to change the legislative agenda at will provided for the possibility of opposition legislators entering the assembly without being informed of what would be discussed in that session.
At Arce's inauguration, Mesa and the entire CC caucus left the hemicycle of the Plurinational Legislative Assembly in protest prior to the end of the ceremony. In a press conference, Mesa announced CC's intent to file an appeal with the Plurinational Constitutional Court (TCP), demanding the unconstitutionality of the annulment of the two-thirds requirement. Three days later, the alliance formally presented the TCP with an appeal containing the signatures of all fifty CC legislators. In late November, the TCP rejected the motion on technical grounds, arguing that the coalition had not gone through the proper legal channels in the Legislative Assembly before bringing their case to the court. Two separate appeals filed by Creemos were also declared inadmissible by the TCP. Creemos Senator Centa Rek denounced that the court's rulings demonstrated its "absolute submission" before the government.
New assembly building
This legislative session saw the completion and inauguration of a new Plurinational Assembly headquarters to replace the previous Legislative Palace. The decision to establish a new building was sanctioned by Law N° 313, which also authorized the erection of a new executive building, the Casa Grande del Pueblo, completed in 2018. Construction began in 2016 under the charge of the firm Asociación Accidental Constructoras Bolivianas (CONSTRUBOL). By the end, the total State investment in the project amounted to Bs473.2 million.
The new legislature covers 44,000m2 with nine underground levels and twenty above-ground floors, allowing it to be seen from anywhere in La Paz and El Alto. It is topped by a cubic structure containing the hemicycle of the Chamber of Senators on levels fourteen and fifteen and the Chamber of Deputies on levels seventeen through twenty. The cube measures a length of thirty-six meters, meant to represent the thirty-six nationally recognized indigenous nations. Additionally, the various offices and corridors are adorned with motifs and artwork from all of these groups.
The new building was inaugurated on 2 August 2020 with the presence of the president, vice president, and most legislators of the ruling party. In his speech, President Arce declared that the legislature symbolized "a new stage" in the country's history. Vice President David Choquehuanca pointed to its establishment as a measure of "decolonized thinking" in the country. Likewise, President of the Chamber of Deputies Freddy Mamani stated that, with the inauguration of the new infrastructure, Bolivia entered a new era, definitively leaving behind the Republic of Bolivia that was superseded by the Plurinational State through the passage of the 2009 Constitution.
Neither CC nor Creemos participated in the inauguration of the new building. In a statement, CC characterized its establishment as "an affront to the country" that wastes economic resources in the midst of a health crisis in order to "satisfy the megalomania of Evo Morales". Senator Rek stated that the decision of its caucus not to attend was due to the fact it had "nothing to celebrate... because we are cut in our rights and legislative functions, and they do not allow us to participate and influence the laws that are approved".
Defection in the opposition Ethics Commission I
While the MAS lay three votes away from reaching two-thirds in the Senate, the daily El Deber noted that swaying that many opposition senators to break ranks would be "almost impossible". However, in the Chamber of Deputies, with its larger pool of possible defectors, the situation was different. Outgoing Deputy Amílcar Barral stated that, while it would be difficult, he "would not be surprised if... some legislators from Civic Community and Creemos... betray their parties and go to support the MAS". He pointed out that this had previously occurred with some senators and deputies in the previous two assemblies.
The first instance of such an occurrence came on 28 January 2021, when Edwin Bazán, head of the Creemos caucus in the Chamber of Deputies, announced the alliance's expulsion of four of its deputies—Tito Caero, Runy Callaú, Sandra Paz, and Omar Rueda—for what he described as "moral turpitude". The decision came due to the events of a month prior, in which the four expelled deputies presented Rueda as a nominee to the Ethics Commission against Bazán, who was nominated by the rest of the Creemos caucus. With MAS support, Rueda was elected to the commission, while Bazán was not taken into account. Bazán denounced that, in this way, the MAS achieved a majority on the commission, with three of its own deputies and one dissident to the two of CC, a fact he indicated they would use to intimidate the opposition with sanctions and legal processes. As a result, Bazán announced his alliance's intent to file a lawsuit with the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) for political transfuge in order to regain the seat. In response, Rueda affirmed that neither he nor his compatriots were allied to the MAS but that they did not hold "favoritism to anyone". He further outlined that his expulsion was not valid because Creemos was not a national political party but, instead, remained a political alliance and, as such, did not have registered members to expel. MAS Deputy Estefanía Morales pointed out that Bazán himself and other Creemos deputies had run in the annulled 2019 elections as members of CC and later joined Creemos for the 2020 election. She went on to characterize the alliance's disagreements as "internal issues that must be resolved in their caucus". On 1 February 2022, the TSE rejected Creemos' complaint.