Rodrigo Paz Pereira facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rodrigo Paz Pereira
Official portrait, c. 2020
Senator for Tarija
Incumbent
Assumed office 3 November 2020 Serving with Nely Gallo, Gladys Alarcón Farfán, and Miguel Rejas
Substitute	Zoya Zamora
Preceded by	Marcelo Antezana
Second Vice President of the Senate
In office 4 November 2020 – 4 November 2021
President	Andrónico Rodríguez
First Vice President	Lindaura Rasguido
Preceded by	Carmen Eva Gonzales
Succeeded by	Santiago Ticona
Leader of First the People
Incumbent
Assumed office 3 April 2019
Preceded by	Civic group established
Mayor of Tarija
In office 30 May 2015 – 24 October 2020
Preceded by	Oscar Montes
Succeeded by	Alfonso Lema
President of the Tarija Municipal Council
In office 31 May 2010 – 30 May 2015
Mayor	Oscar Montes
Preceded by	Roberto Ávila Castellanos
Succeeded by	Alfonso Lema
Member of the Chamber of Deputies from Tarija
In office 22 January 2006 – 22 January 2010
Substitute	Julio Vaca Guzmán
Preceded by	Fernando Castellanos
Succeeded by	Roy Cornejo Raña
Constituency	Circumscription 46
In office 6 August 2002 – 22 January 2006
Substitute	Pedro Romero Sagredo
Preceded by	Pedro Romero Sagredo
Succeeded by	Eulalio Sánchez
Constituency	Circumscription 49
Personal details
Born	Rodrigo Paz Pereira (1967-09-22) 22 September 1967 (age 58) Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain
Other political affiliations	Revolutionary Left Movement (before 2006) MIR-FRI (2002–2005) Social Democratic Power (2005–2008) United to Renew (2009–2016)
Spouse	Mari Elena Urquidi
Children	Catalina Alicia Paulino Elena
Parents	Jaime Paz Zamora Carmen Pereira Carballo
Education	San Ignacio School
Alma mater	American University (BIGS, MPM)

Rodrigo Paz Pereira was born on September 22, 1967. He is a politician from Bolivia. He has been a senator for the Tarija region since 2020. Before that, he was the mayor of Tarija from 2015 to 2020. He also led the Tarija City Council from 2010 to 2015. Earlier in his career, he was a member of the Chamber of Deputies. He represented Tarija from 2002 to 2010. His father, Jaime Paz Zamora, was a former president of Bolivia.

Who is Rodrigo Paz Pereira?

His Early Life and Education

Rodrigo Paz Pereira was born in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, on September 22, 1967. His mother was Carmen Pereira Carballo from Spain. His father was Jaime Paz Zamora, a well-known Bolivian politician. His father founded the Revolutionary Left Movement (MIR) party. Jaime Paz Zamora later became vice president and then president.

Rodrigo spent his childhood living in different countries. This was because his family had to live in other countries due to political changes in Bolivia. He went to many schools, including Jesuit schools. When democracy returned to Bolivia, he studied at the San Ignacio School in La Paz.

Later, Rodrigo Paz went to the American University in Washington, D.C., USA. He earned a degree in international relations and a master's in political management. He also worked at the Bolivian embassy in Spain. He helped with trade and represented Bolivia at the World Trade Organization.

Starting His Political Journey

Rodrigo Paz began his political career. He was seen as a young leader with connections to important party figures. In the 2002 elections, his father's party, MIR, chose him to run for office in Tarija. He won this election easily. He became a member of the National Congress for his district.

Even when there were big changes in how politics worked in Bolivia, Rodrigo Paz continued his career. In the 2005 elections, he ran again for Tarija. This time, he was part of an alliance with another party.

Rodrigo Paz was a candidate for president in the 2025 Bolivian general election. In the first round of voting on August 17, he received about 32% of the votes. He placed first and is preparing for a second round of voting against former president Jorge Quiroga.

Serving as Mayor of Tarija

Leading the City Council

After his first party lost its national standing, Rodrigo Paz joined a new group called United to Renew (UNIR). This group was led by Oscar Montes, who was the mayor of Tarija. In the 2010 elections, Rodrigo Paz led UNIR's list of city councillors. He supported Oscar Montes's goal to be mayor for a third time.

From 2010 to 2015, Rodrigo Paz was the president of the Tarija Municipal Council. He worked with Mayor Montes during this time.

Becoming Mayor

In the 2015 elections, Rodrigo Paz was chosen to run for mayor of Tarija. He won the election by a large margin. He received almost 60% of the votes in the city.

When he became mayor on May 30, 2015, it was noted that his party and its allies had led Tarija for many years. However, Rodrigo Paz wanted to focus on the ideas of his father's original party. This led to him leaving the UNIR group after about a year.

On April 3, 2019, Rodrigo Paz started his own political group. It was called First the People (Primero la Gente). This group aimed to bring together different parts of the city and region. Its main idea was to focus on the needs of the people.

After a time of political changes in Bolivia in 2019, Rodrigo Paz's term as mayor was extended. However, he decided to resign on October 20, 2020. He did this to take a new position in the Plurinational Legislative Assembly. The City Council accepted his resignation. They then chose Alfonso Lema to be the new mayor.

Working in the Senate

How He Was Elected to the Senate

For the 2019 elections, Rodrigo Paz's group, First the People (PG), joined with the Christian Democratic Party (PDC). His father, Jaime Paz Zamora, was a presidential candidate for this alliance. However, his father later decided not to run.

Rodrigo Paz then decided to support Carlos Mesa and his party, Civic Community (CC). On February 3, 2020, his group officially joined with CC. He became their candidate for the first senator from Tarija. He won this election and became a senator.

What He Did as Senator

As a senator, Rodrigo Paz spoke a lot about changing how the national census was done. A census is a count of all the people in a country. He wanted to make sure the 2022 census was fair and open.

In January 2022, he suggested creating special offices for statistics in each region. These offices would help collect local information. He believed this would make the census more accurate and truly "a census of the people." He also asked for more information about how the census was being prepared. He wanted to make sure everything was transparent.

Important Roles in the Senate

• He was the Second Vice President of the Senate from November 4, 2020, to November 4, 2021.
• He became the President of the Rural Indigenous Nations and Peoples, Cultures, and Interculturality Commission on November 10, 2021.

His Election Results

Rodrigo Paz Pereira has participated in several elections throughout his career. Here is a summary of his election results: