Bolivian polls close in historic runoff

Voting in Bolivia's historic presidential runoff ended on Sunday evening, marking the definitive end of two decades of leftist dominance as citizens chose between two conservative candidates.

The election signals a major political shift for the Andean nation following the defeat of the long-ruling Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) party in the first round.

Polling stations were open from 8.00 am to 4.00 pm local time, with approximately 7.9 million registered voters eligible to cast their ballots for the country's next leader.

The Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) confirmed that the process was conducted in a generally peaceful manner, with high turnout and no major incidents reported, despite a highly polarized political climate.

The nation now awaits the final official tally from the unprecedented second-round election, which pits centrist Senator Rodrigo Paz against the conservative former President Jorge "Tuto" Quiroga.

This marks the first presidential election runoff in Bolivia's modern democratic history.