Bolivian voters have repudiated two decades of leftist rule and overwhelmingly backed a centrist senator and son of a former president in Sunday’s presidential run-off. The convincing victory of Rodrigo Paz over right-wing former president Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga was as decisive as in the first round in August, when he had topped the tally among eight candidates. The most defining factor in this election was the elimination, in the first round, of the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party of three-time former president Evo Morales—the dominant political force since 2005.

The popular verdict could herald a new dawn in Bolivia after the turbulent tenure of outgoing president Luis Arce, which........

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