Three months ago, Rodrigo Paz was a little-known Bolivian opposition senator with a famous father and a mixed reputation as mayor. Now he’s the first conservative to win a presidential election in the country in 20 years. To widespread surprise, the centrist Paz, 58, beat out his far more prominent right-wing opponent, former President Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga, to clinch a victory in Bolivia’s presidential runoff on Sunday. He becomes Bolivia’s next head of state on Nov. 8. The centrist inherits an economy in shambles after 20 years of rule by the Movement Toward Socialism party, founded by charismatic former President Evo Morales.
