Canada calls for runoff vote in contested Bolivian election

“Deeply concerned” by reports of election irregularities in Bolivia, Canada has joined the United States and its European allies in calling for a runoff vote in the South American country and warning that otherwise it will not recognize the results of the disputed poll, Global Affairs Canada announced Tuesday.

“It is not possible to accept the outcome under these circumstances,” said a statement issued by Global Affairs Canada following two weeks of protests against incumbent Bolivian President Evo Morales triggered by a dispute over election results.

“We join our international partners in calling for a second round of elections to restore credibility in the electoral process.”

Demonstrators supporting Morales and backers of opposition leader Carlos Mesa clashed Tuesday in downtown La Paz, while police fired tear gas to disperse both sides.

Violent clashes a day earlier left 40 people injured in the cities of Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. Police said 20 people were detained.

“Canada is closely following events in Bolivia and calls on all parties to exercise restraint and avoid violence and polarizing rhetoric,” said the statement by Global Affairs.

Supporters of Mesa say results from the Oct. 20 election were rigged to give Morales enough votes to avoid a second round that he might lose to a unified opposition. Mesa is demanding new elections or a runoff vote.

Speaking to a large crowd of supporters in the city of El Alto on Monday, Morales, who is seeking a controversial and contested fourth term in office, proclaimed victory.

“Show us where there was fraud,” said Morales, who denies irregularities and says he welcomes an international audit of the election. The leftist leader accused “the right” of trying to orchestrate a coup d’état.

The Canadian call for a runoff vote comes after five days of scrutiny and auditing of ballots by a 90-person team of observers from the Organization of American States. The Bolivian government agreed to cooperate with the audit after the results were questioned by the governments of several South American countries and the U.S., and by Bolivia’s main foreign donor, the European Union.

“We are deeply concerned by additional reports of serious election irregularities,” said the statement by Global Affairs Canada.

“These reports build on the preliminary conclusions of the Organization of American States (OAS) Electoral Observer Mission which found that the electoral process did not comply with international standards.”

The OAS has raised concerns over the unexplained 24 hour interruption in the disclosure of the election results, the statement added.

Even as the audit proceeded, the government continued to insist the election had been free and fair and that Morales had won a fourth term.

Morales has won support for his claims from leftist leaders in the region, including Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, Argentina’s president-elect Alberto Fernandez, Mexico’s Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Cuba’s Miguel Diaz-Canel.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussed the election results and the unrest in Bolivia in a call with Chilean President Sebastián Piñera, who has been forced to dismiss his entire cabinet in response to massive and sometimes deadly anti-government protests.

“The Prime Minister and the President exchanged views on key regional issues, including the importance of addressing people’s concerns around economic opportunity and inequalities,” said a readout of the phone call between Trudeau and Piñera released by the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Prime Minister Trudeau also shared his concern about election irregularities in Bolivia.”

With files from Evan Dyers of CBC News and The Associated Press