Rafael Quispe

An ethnic Aymara, Rafael Quispe was born on 24 October 1969 in the Sicuypata Ayllu of La Paz's Coro Coro Municipality, a locale that, according to local indigenous custom, is situated in the Caquingora Marka of the Pakajaqi Suyu.{{Cite news |date=25 February 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe: Hago marketing político y la gente me conoce mejor |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: By Doing Political Marketing, the People Know Me Better |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://urgente.bo/noticia/rafael-quispe-hago-marketing-pol%C3%ADtico-y-la-gente-me-conoce-mejor |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805175149/https://urgente.bo/noticia/rafael-quispe-hago-marketing-pol%C3%ADtico-y-la-gente-me-conoce-mejor |archive-date=5 August 2022}}{{efn-lg|Per indigenous custom, the Aymara realm (Qullasuyu) is divided between suyus (provinces) made up of markas (regions), agglomerations of multiple autonomous ayllus, the collective landholdings of the Aymara. They are represented by a mallku (traditional leader) elected through usos y costumbres.{{Cite news |last=Weinberg |first=Bill |author-link=Bill Weinberg |date=2 September 2010 |title=Beyond Extraction: An Interview With Rafael Quispe |language=en |work=NACLA Report on the Americas |publisher=Routledge for the North American Congress on Latin America |publication-place=New York City |url=https://nacla.org/article/beyond-extraction-interview-rafael-quispe |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306113429/https://nacla.org/article/beyond-extraction-interview-rafael-quispe |archive-date=6 March 2012}}}} He is the youngest of eight siblings born to Manuela Flores; their father, a local miner, died when he was 18. Raised in rural poverty, Quispe completed lower secondary education in Coro Coro before dropping out to focus on cattle grazing and sheepherding. As a young adult, he entered the Armed Forces to fulfill his period of mandatory military service. Despite being an exceptional serviceman, Quispe was precluded from attaining the rank of corporal due to his lack of a high school diploma, a fact that motivated him to complete his education. He moved to El Alto, graduating from the Center for Accelerated Secondary Education before going on to work in a variety of blue-collar fields, including as a cobbler, mechanic, and service driver. During this time, Quispe intermittently studied law at multiple institutions, including the Higher University of San Andrés, before settling at the University of Valle, though he ultimately did not finish his degree.{{Cite news |date=4 November 2013 |title=Quispe: No creo que lleguemos al poder este 2014 |language=es |trans-title=Quispe: I Don't Think We'll Arrive to Power This 2014 |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/indigenas/04112013/quispe_no_creo_que_lleguemos_al_poder_este_2014 |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200907005502/https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/indigenas/04112013/quispe_no_creo_que_lleguemos_al_poder_este_2014 |archive-date=7 September 2020}}{{Cite news |last=Romero |first=Daniela |date=7 February 2021 |title='Tata' Quispe: 'Yo llego a la clase media y a los indios, es mi fortaleza' |language=es |trans-title="Tata" Quispe: "I Reach the Middle Class and the Indians; It's My Strength" |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/especial02/2021/2/7/tata-quispe-yo-llego-la-clase-media-los-indios-es-mi-fortaleza-283643.html |url-status=dead |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228090234/https://www.paginasiete.bo/especial02/2021/2/7/tata-quispe-yo-llego-la-clase-media-los-indios-es-mi-fortaleza-283643.html |archive-date=28 February 2021}}

File:Inauguration of Rafael Quispe as Director of the Indigenous Development Fund. 26 November 2019, Ministry of the Presidency, La Paz. (51915421980).jpg

Returning to Coro Coro, in 2000, Quispe, together with his mother, assumed a position of local leadership within his ayllu. He held prominent posts in the region until 2005, being named mallku of his marka and later mallku of the entire suyu. In the 2002 general election, he threw his weight behind the Pachakuti Indigenous Movement, supporting the presidential campaign of Felipe Quispe. Following the election of Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, Quispe was an active opposition leader, taking part in protests in El Alto during the 2003 gas conflict. Quispe's rise within indigenist circles culminated in his 2010 election as a member of the governing board of the National Council of Ayllus and Markas of Qullasuyu (CONAMAQ), serving as mallku of the organization's Extractive Industries Commission. Upon the conclusion of his term, he served as CONAMAQ's representative at the Andean Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations, an international organization with presence in six countries and consultative status with the United Nations.{{Cite news |date=4 August 2014 |title=¿Quién es quién?: Rafael Arcángel Quispe Flores |language=es |trans-title=Who's Who?: Rafael Arcángel Quispe Flores |work=El Diario |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.pub.eldiario.net/noticias/2014/2014_08/nt140804/politica.php?n=71&-rafael-quispe-flores |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806061052/https://www.pub.eldiario.net/noticias/2014/2014_08/nt140804/politica.php?n=71&-rafael-quispe-flores |archive-date=6 August 2022}}

Originally a supporter of President Evo Morales, Quispe later soured on the indigenous leader. In particular, he accused Morales's policies of failing to reflect his environmentalist rhetoric, citing the president's support for extractive industries such as mining and petroleum. In an interview with Bill Weinberg for the NACLA Report on the Americas, Quispe denounced the government's environmental policy as a "systematic violation of the rights of the peoples and of the Pachamama," accusing Morales of being "the foremost violator of Mother Earth." Quispe's active opposition to the Morales administration gained him national notoriety in 2011 when he became one of the primary leaders of the indigenous march in defense of the Isiboro Sécure National Park and Indigenous Territory, which protested the government's attempt to construct a highway running through the protected area without prior consultation with the native population.{{Cite news |last=Kenner |first=Dario |date=21 September 2011 |title=Bolivia: The TIPNIS conflict in-depth |work=Latin America Bureau |location=La Paz |publication-place=London |url=https://lab.org.uk/bolivia-the-tipnis-conflict-in-depth-part-two/ |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210805212616/https://lab.org.uk/bolivia-the-tipnis-conflict-in-depth-part-two/ |archive-date=5 August 2021 }}

{{Further|2014 Bolivian general election}}

By late 2013, Quispe, having risen to national prominence, sought to position himself as an indigenous alternative to the ruling Movement for Socialism (MAS-IPSP), with his name emerging as a potential candidate for the presidency on behalf of CONAMAQ. Despite stating that he would accept heading the ticket if nominated, Quispe admitted that his chances of reaching the presidency were negligible. Nonetheless, he outlined that his front's main goal was not the presidency but rather to attain independent indigenous representation in the Plurinational Legislative Assembly.

In November, Quispe's faction of CONAMAQ brokered a political agreement with the Green Party (PVB-IEP) to jointly contest the 2014 general elections.{{Cite news |date=28 November 2013 |title=El Partido Verde y CONAMAQ firman acuerdo político rumbo a las elecciones |language=es |trans-title=The Green Party and CONAMAQ Sign a Political Accord in View of the Elections |work=Opinión |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/partido-verde-conamaq-firman-acuerdo-politico-rumbo-elecciones/20131128113100455301.html |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807034919/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/partido-verde-conamaq-firman-acuerdo-politico-rumbo-elecciones/20131128113100455301.html |archive-date=7 August 2022}} To this was added the "freethinkers," a faction of MAS dissidents led by former Chamber of Deputies president Rebeca Delgado. However, internal disputes over the coalition's presidential ballot quickly fractured the alliance, with the "freethinkers" pushing Delgado for the presidency while CONAMAQ lobbied for Quispe to head the ticket.{{Cite news |date=29 October 2013 |title=¿Rebeca o Quispe?: CONAMAQ, CIDOB y librepensantes no se ponen de acuerdo |language=es |trans-title=Rebeca or Quispe?: CONAMAQ, CIDOB, and the Freethinkers Disagree |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://eju.tv/2013/10/rebeca-o-quispe-conamaq-cidob-y-librepensantes-no-se-ponen-de-acuerdo/ |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807034927/https://eju.tv/2013/10/rebeca-o-quispe-conamaq-cidob-y-librepensantes-no-se-ponen-de-acuerdo/ |archive-date=7 August 2022 |via=eju!}} In February 2014, Quispe broke CONAMAQ's pact with the PVB, opting instead to sign an alliance with Samuel Doria Medina's National Unity Front (UN). As part of their five-point agreement, Doria Medina pledged to give indigenous candidates a twenty percent share on the alliance's electoral list.{{Cite news |date=26 February 2014 |title=Rafael Quispe se alía al Frente Amplio |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Aligns with the Broad Front |work=Los Tiempos |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/nacional/20140226/rafael-quispe-se-alia-al-frente-amplio |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807034938/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/nacional/20140226/rafael-quispe-se-alia-al-frente-amplio |archive-date=7 August 2022}}

As a means of consolidating a single presidential ticket, UN and its allies presented five pre-candidates as possible contenders for the nomination, including Quispe. The winner of this makeshift primary election was selected through a nationwide poll conducted between 19 and 20 April. On 21 April, Doria Medina was presented as the winning candidate, attaining the preference of sixty-nine percent of the 2,652 individuals surveyed. Unofficial data released by La Razón placed Quispe in third place with ten percent of the vote.{{Cite news |last=Vacaflor |first=Nancy |date=1 April 2014 |title=Frente Amplio presenta cinco precandidatos presidenciales |language=es |trans-title=The Broad Fronts Presents Five Presidential Pre-candidates |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/frente-amplio-presenta-cinco-precandidatos-presidenciales-DKPS17702 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140403231049/http://www.paginasiete.bo:80/nacional/2014/4/1/frente-amplio-presenta-cinco-precandidatos-presidenciales-17702.html |archive-date=2014-04-03}}{{Cite news |last=Ariñez |first=Rubén |date=29 April 2014 |title=El candidato del Frente Amplio es Doria Medina |language=es |trans-title=Doria Medina Is the Broad Front's Candidate |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=http://www.la-razon.com/nacional/Elecciones-candidato-Frente_Amplio-Doria_Medina_0_2042795750.html |url-status=dead |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170801073305/http://www.la-razon.com/nacional/Elecciones-candidato-Frente_Amplio-Doria_Medina_0_2042795750.html |archive-date=1 August 2017}} In the ensuing weeks, Quispe was presented on the coalition's preliminary electoral list as a possible candidate for substitute senator together with Soledad Chapetón. However, Quispe rejected the nomination, maintaining that he was unwilling to be the running mate of someone "who did not fight for the demands of the country's indigenous movement."{{Cite news |date=8 July 2014 |title=Rafael Quispe no quiere ser senador suplente de Chapetón |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Refuses to Be Chapetón's Substitute |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/indigenas/08072014/quispe_rechaza_ser_senador_suplente_de_chapeton |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807035356/https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/indigenas/08072014/quispe_rechaza_ser_senador_suplente_de_chapeton |archive-date=7 August 2022 |quote=Quispe dijo que no acepta ser suplente de una persona que no luchó por las reivindicaciones del movimiento indígena del país.}} He also expressed his discontent with the lack of indigenous presence on the final list of candidates, threatening to withdraw CONAMAQ's support if the issue was not rectified.{{Cite news |date=8 July 2014 |title=Rafael Quispe no quiere ser senador suplente de Chapetón |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Refuses to Be Chapetón's Substitute |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/indigenas/08072014/quispe_rechaza_ser_senador_suplente_de_chapeton |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807035356/https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/indigenas/08072014/quispe_rechaza_ser_senador_suplente_de_chapeton |archive-date=7 August 2022}}

Ultimately, Quispe was nominated as a candidate for deputy, placing fifth on the Democratic Unity (UD) coalition's electoral list.{{Cite news |year=2014 |title=Listado de Candidatos y Candidatas {{!}} Elecciones Generales 2014 |language=es |pages=8 |work=Plurinational Electoral Organ |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.oep.org.bo/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/ud_candidatos_2014.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211229014523/https://www.oep.org.bo/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/ud_candidatos_2014.pdf |archive-date=29 December 2021}} UD's mediocre performance in the La Paz Department garnered it just four party-list deputies, precluding Quispe from entering the chamber. However, in November, UD requested that the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) authorize Quispe to serve as a substitute deputy, filling the vacancy left by María Eugenia Calcina, who assumed the primary position due to Jaime Navarro's last-minute withdrawal from the race.{{Cite news |last=Rojas |first=Christian |date=1 September 2014 |title=Rafael Quispe pide la renuncia de Jaime Navarro a la UD tras polémica por el audio |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Calls for Jaime Navarro's Resignation from UD After Audio Controversy |agency=Oxígeno.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://oxigeno.bo/3665 |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807035505/https://oxigeno.bo/3665 |archive-date=7 August 2022}}{{Cite news |date=12 November 2014 |title=UD solicita al TSE que habilite a Rafael Quispe como diputado suplente |language=es |trans-title=UD Requests That the TSE Authorize Rafael Quispe as a Substitute Deputy |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/ud-solicita-al-tse-que-habilite-a-rafael-quispe-como-diputado-suplente-347821-347805 |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807035555/https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/ud-solicita-al-tse-que-habilite-a-rafael-quispe-como-diputado-suplente-347821-347805 |archive-date=7 August 2022}}

Throughout his term in the Chamber of Deputies, Quispe's humorous but polemic style of politics, described by Página Siete as "characterized by{{Nbsp}}... sarcastic statements or by attitudes that he assumed in certain controversial cases," made him a well-known and contentious figure. In one instance, Quispe infamously gifted a "basic level" Aymara language translation dictionary to President Morales when the debate over the head of state's native language proficiency was in vogue.{{Cite news |last=Carballo |first=María |date=29 March 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe: El lado humorístico y polémico de la política |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: The Humorous and Controversial Side of Politics |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |url-status=dead |access-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828070705/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |archive-date=28 August 2020 |quote=...{{nbsp}}Quispe es un político que se caracteriza por sus declaraciones sarcásticas o por actitudes que asume en determinados casos polémicos{{nbsp}}...}} When Morales sought to amend the Constitution to abolish term limits, Quispe protested the move, attending a session of the lower house adorned with a cardboard Inca crown, mockingly declaring: "I also want to be a king."{{Cite news |date=17 September 2015 |title=Oposición comienza campaña por el 'No' y Quispe se pone corona |language=es |trans-title=Opposition Begins Campaign for the "No," and Quispe Dons a Crown |work=Opinión |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/oposici-oacute-n-comienza-campa-ntilde-quispe-pone-corona/20150917210100531197.html |url-status=live |access-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809043933/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/mas-califica-quispe-como-quot-chapul-iacute-n-colorado-quot-asamblea-legislativa/20181126114800633758.html |archive-date=9 August 2022}} The deputy's lighthearted attitude "provoke[d] laughter from the journalists who interview[ed] him, from the politicians who surround[ed] him, and from internet users who never tire[d] of sharing his statements on social networks."{{Cite news |last=Carballo |first=María |date=29 March 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe, el lado humorístico y polémico de la política |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: The Humorous and Controversial Side of Politics |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |url-status=dead |access-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828070705/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |archive-date=28 August 2020 |quote=...{{nbsp}}Rafael Quispe se ha convertido en los últimos años en un legislador polémico que provoca las risas de los periodistas que lo entrevistan, de los políticos que lo rodean y de los internautas que no se cansan de compartir en redes sociales sus declaraciones{{nbsp}}...}} Conversely, critics accused Quispe of being a "clown" who "turns everything into a joke" in order to get "three more minutes in the media," with one MAS legislator describing him as the "Chapulín Colorado" of the Legislative Assembly.{{Cite news |date=26 November 2018 |title=MAS califica a Quispe como el 'Chapulín Colorado' de la Asamblea Legislativa |language=es |trans-title=MAS Qualifies Quispe As the "Chapulín Colorado" of the Legislative Assembly |work=Opinión |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/mas-califica-quispe-como-quot-chapul-iacute-n-colorado-quot-asamblea-legislativa/20181126114800633758.html |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809043933/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/mas-califica-quispe-como-quot-chapul-iacute-n-colorado-quot-asamblea-legislativa/20181126114800633758.html |archive-date=9 August 2022}} For his part, Quispe defended his behavior, stating that "I do striking things, but I do them so that the people understand{{nbsp}}... in a didactic way what is happening in the country."{{Cite news |last=Carballo |first=María |date=29 March 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe, el lado humorístico y polémico de la política |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: The Humorous and Controversial Side of Politics |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |url-status=dead |access-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828070705/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |archive-date=28 August 2020 |quote='Son cosas llamativas las que hago, pero las hago para que el pueblo entienda, para que la gente entienda de manera didáctica lo que sucede en el país', [Quispe] afirmó hoy a Página Siete.}} "The message you give to people is better accepted with humor," he stated.{{Cite news |date=25 February 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe: Hago marketing político y la gente me conoce mejor |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: By Doing Political Marketing, the People Know Me Better |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://urgente.bo/noticia/rafael-quispe-hago-marketing-pol%C3%ADtico-y-la-gente-me-conoce-mejor |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805023511/https://urgente.bo/noticia/rafael-quispe-hago-marketing-pol%C3%ADtico-y-la-gente-me-conoce-mejor |archive-date=5 August 2022 |quote=El mensaje que das a la gente lo aceptan mejor con humor.}}

File:Rafael Arcángel Quispe Flores (Official Photo) Chamber of Deputies of Bolivia.jpg

The many political stunts Quispe pulled were often accompanied by serious accusations against ruling party officials or otherwise made light of allegations levied against him.{{Cite news |last=Carballo |first=María |date=29 March 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe, el lado humorístico y polémico de la política |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: The Humorous and Controversial Side of Politics |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |url-status=dead |access-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828070705/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/3/29/rafael-quispe-el-lado-humoristico-polemico-de-la-politica-213521.html |archive-date=28 August 2020}} In early 2015, Quispe became involved as a plaintiff in an investigation into embezzlement within the Indigenous Development Fund. Inspectors found that over 700 public works projects sponsored by the Indigenous Fund had been left unfinished or never even existed at all, with the public resources having been distributed into private accounts or political campaigns, constituting Bs{{Nbsp}}102 million in economic damage to the State.{{Cite news |last=Aguilar |first=Wilson |date=20 April 2022 |title=El desfalco del FONDIOC por Bs{{nbsp}}100 millones quedó en la impunidad |language=es |trans-title=The FONDIOC's Embezzlement of Bs{{nbsp}}100 Million Remains Impunity |work=Los Tiempos |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20220420/desfalco-del-fondioc-bs-100-millones-quedo-impunidad |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513220134/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20220420/desfalco-del-fondioc-bs-100-millones-quedo-impunidad |archive-date=13 May 2022}} In March of that year, Quispe accused {{ill|Felipa Huanca|es}}—then the MAS candidate for the governorship of La Paz—of having Bs{{Nbsp}}1 million in assets of unknown origin, adding that she had received Bs{{Nbsp}}99,528 from the Indigenous Fund during her time as a legal representative for the Bartolina Sisa Confederation.{{Cite news |date=24 March 2015 |title=Denuncian que Huanca tiene cerca a Bs{{nbsp}}1 millón en bienes |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Denounces That Huanca Holds Nearly Bs{{nbsp}}1 Million in Assets |work=Página Siete |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/denuncian-que-huanca-tiene-cerca-a-bs-1-millon-en-bienes-XMPS51132 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150327124755/http://www.paginasiete.bo:80/nacional/2015/3/24/denuncian-huanca-tiene-cerca-millon-bienes-51132.html |archive-date=27 March 2015}}{{Cite news |date=19 May 2015 |title=Felipa Huanca debe declarar por el caso Fondo Indígena |language=es |trans-title=Felipa Huanca Must Testify for the Indigenous Fund Case |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/economia/felipa-huanca-debe-declarar-por-el-caso-fondo-indigena_23640 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809175859/https://eldeber.com.bo/economia/felipa-huanca-debe-declarar-por-el-caso-fondo-indigena_23640 |archive-date=9 August 2022}} Huanca went on to lose the gubernatorial election, for which she sued Quispe on allegations of political harassment and discrimination.{{Cite news |date=16 April 2015 |title=Huanca se querella contra el diputado Rafael Quispe |language=es |trans-title=Huanca Sues Deputy Rafael Quispe |work=Opinión |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/huanca-querella-diputado-rafael-quispe/20150416202900518812.html |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809180012/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/huanca-querella-diputado-rafael-quispe/20150416202900518812.html |archive-date=9 August 2022}}

The oral trial against Quispe was opened by La Paz's First Anti-Corruption and Violence Against Women Court on 7 February 2018. Quispe failed to attend the hearing three times, considering it a waste of time, for which an arrest warrant to secure his presence was issued.{{Cite news |last1=Ariñez |first1=Rubén |last2=Canqui |first2=Alicia |date=6 February 2018 |title=Este miércoles se activa el juicio oral por acoso político de Felipa Huanca contra Rafael Quispe |language=es |trans-title=The Oral Trial for Felipa Huanca's Political Harassment Suit Against Rafael Quispe Begins This Wednesday |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/lr-article/este-miercoles-se-activa-el-juicio-oral-por-acoso-politico-de-felipa-huanca-contra-rafael-quispe/ |url-status=live |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812225221/https://www.la-razon.com/lr-article/este-miercoles-se-activa-el-juicio-oral-por-acoso-politico-de-felipa-huanca-contra-rafael-quispe/ |archive-date=12 August 2022}}{{Cite news |last=Pomacahua |first=Pamela |date=6 March 2018 |title=Emiten orden de aprehensión contra Rafael Quispe |language=es |trans-title=Judge Issues an Arrest Warrant Against Rafael Quispe |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/emiten-orden-de-aprehension-contra-rafael-quispe-DFPS172111 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180306090802/http://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2018/3/6/emiten-orden-aprehensin-contra-rafael-quispe-172111.html |archive-date=6 March 2018}} In response, Quispe challenged judicial officials to apprehend him, even waiting outside the office of departmental prosecutor Edwin Blanco, bringing with him a tray of fifteen eggs "in case he lacks them."{{Cite news |date=18 April 2018 |title=Diputado lleva huevos a fiscales y pide que ejecuten su aprehensión |language=es |trans-title=Deputy Delivers Eggs to Prosecutors and Asks Them to Execute His Arrest Warrant |work=El Diario |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.pub.eldiario.net/noticias/2018/2018_04/nt180418/sociedad.php?n=64&-diputado-lleva-huevos-a-fiscales-y-pide-que-ejecuten-su-aprehension |url-status=live |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812225634/https://www.pub.eldiario.net/noticias/2018/2018_04/nt180418/sociedad.php?n=64&-diputado-lleva-huevos-a-fiscales-y-pide-que-ejecuten-su-aprehension |archive-date=12 August 2022}}{{efn-lg|In Spanish slang, huevos (eggs) can be used to mean testicles, the insinuation being that Blanco lacked the courage to arrest him.}} After continued frequent absences, law enforcement officials arrested Quispe on 16 May, transferring the legislator in handcuffs to the courthouse. There, as an alternative to preventative detention, a judge permitted him to defend himself in freedom so long as he did not leave the country and refrained from making any public statements about Huanca.{{Cite news |date=16 May 2018 |title=Quispe queda libre, pero le prohíben hablar de Huanca |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Is Let Go but Is Prohibited from Speaking About Huanca |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/seguridad/16052018/quispe_queda_libre_pero_le_prohiben_hablar_de_huanca |url-status=live |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812225738/https://anteriorportal.erbol.com.bo/noticia/seguridad/16052018/quispe_queda_libre_pero_le_prohiben_hablar_de_huanca |archive-date=12 August 2022}} In a subsequent press conference, Quispe appeared before media outlets in silence, having tapped shut his mouth with a piece of paper labelled "do not ask me about her."{{Cite news |last=Columba |first=José Luis |date=18 May 2018 |title=Rafael Quispe está prohibido de hablar de Felipa Huanca y se tapa la boca con el mensaje: 'No me pregunten por ella' |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Is Prohibited from Speaking About Felipa Huanca; He Covers His Mouth with the Message: "Don't Ask Me About Her" |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2018/05/18/rafael-quispe-esta-prohibido-de-hablar-de-felipa-huanca-y-se-tapa-la-boca-con-el-mensaje-no-me-pregunten-por-ella/ |url-status=live |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812225906/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2018/05/18/rafael-quispe-esta-prohibido-de-hablar-de-felipa-huanca-y-se-tapa-la-boca-con-el-mensaje-no-me-pregunten-por-ella/ |archive-date=12 August 2022}}

Quispe's confrontational attitude quickly established him as a prominent independent figure within the legislature, with disputes between himself and members of both the ruling party and his own caucus even netting him a six-month suspension from office at one point.{{Cite news |date=22 December 2016 |title=El MAS suspende al diputado Rafael Quispe por seis meses |language=es |trans-title=The MAS Suspends Deputy Rafael Quispe for Six Months |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://urgente.bo/noticia/el-mas-suspende-al-diputado-rafael-quispe-por-seis-meses#:~:text=%2DEl%20diputado%20de%20Unidad%20Democrata,el%20cargo%20para%20beneficio%20personal. |url-status=live |access-date=14 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805180153/https://urgente.bo/noticia/el-mas-suspende-al-diputado-rafael-quispe-por-seis-meses |archive-date=5 August 2022}} Less than a year into his term, Quispe withdrew himself from his alliance with UN, citing disagreements with Deputy Jimena Costa, the caucus's leader in the Chamber of Deputies, whom he regarded as a "[MAS] infiltrator." For the duration of his tenure, Quispe operated largely independently of his caucus, remaining connected with legislators of the Social Democratic Movement (MDS)—the secondary force within the UD alliance, after UN—but never fully joining the party's ranks.{{Cite news |date=15 May 2015 |title=Rafael Quispe afirma que Jimena Costa es infiltrada del MAS |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Affirms That Jimena Costa Is a MAS Infiltrator |work=Opinión |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/rafael-quispe-afirma-jimena-costa-es-infiltrada-mas/20150515211300521245.html |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809223633/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/rafael-quispe-afirma-jimena-costa-es-infiltrada-mas/20150515211300521245.html |archive-date=9 August 2022}}{{Cite news |date=17 October 2015 |title=El opositor Rafael Quispe rompe su alianza con UN |language=es |trans-title=Opposition Deputy Rafael Quispe Breaks His Alliance with UN |work=El Potosí |agency=Oxígeno.bo and El Deber |location=La Paz |url=https://elpotosi.net/nacional/20151017_el-opositor-rafael-quispe-rompe-su-alianza-con-un.html |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018135846/https://elpotosi.net/nacional/20151017_el-opositor-rafael-quispe-rompe-su-alianza-con-un.html |archive-date=18 October 2015}} Instead, Quispe maintained individual working relationships with like-minded legislators; in particular, Urgente.bo noted his association with UN deputies Amilcar Barral and Wilson Santamaría, with the three parliamentarians having "closed ranks as a trio."{{Cite news |date=27 March 2019 |title=Barral, Santamaría y Quispe: De amigos a rivales políticos |language=es |trans-title=Barral, Santamaría, and Quispe: From Friends to Political Rivals |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.urgente.bo/noticia/barral-santamar%C3%ADa-y-quispe-de-amigos-rivales-pol%C3%ADticos |url-status=live |access-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726220557/https://www.urgente.bo/noticia/barral-santamar%C3%ADa-y-quispe-de-amigos-rivales-pol%C3%ADticos |archive-date=26 July 2022}}

When the TSE digitized its electoral roll in the leadup to the 2019 general election, Quispe was erroneously registered as a partisan of the Movement for Socialism. In response, the legislator joked with reporters that he now "smell[ed] of corruption. I'm washing myself with bleach in vain; it doesn't come out." In addition to assuring that he would file a complaint with the Prosecutor's Office, Quispe also used to opportunity to contest the MAS's presidential primary, seeking to challenge Morales for the nomination.{{Cite news |date=20 November 2019 |title=Quispe está de militante del MAS y anuncia que impugnará a Evo |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Is Registered as a MAS Partisan and Announces That He Will Challenge Evo |work=Opinión |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/quispe-est-aacute-militante-mas-anuncia-impugnar-aacute-evo/20181120071900633105.html |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815163637/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/el-pais/quispe-est-aacute-militante-mas-anuncia-impugnar-aacute-evo/20181120071900633105.html |archive-date=15 August 2022}}{{Cite news |date=27 April 2022 |title=De líder de CONAMAQ a político viral, el 'Tata' Quispe dice adiós a la política tras retractarse por una orden judicial |language=es |trans-title=From CONAMAQ Leader to Political Rival, "Tata" Quispe Says Goodbye to Politics After Court Order Forces Him to Retract His Statements |work=Brújula Digital |url=https://www.brujuladigital.net/politica/de-lider-de-conamaq-a-politico-viral-el-tata-quispe-dice-adios-a-la-politica-tras-retractarse-por-una-orden-judicial |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428045857/https://www.brujuladigital.net/politica/de-lider-de-conamaq-a-politico-viral-el-tata-quispe-dice-adios-a-la-politica-tras-retractarse-por-una-orden-judicial |archive-date=28 April 2022 |quote='A mí me han inscrito en el MAS y estoy oliendo a corrupción. En vano me estoy lavando con lavandina, no sale' [Quispe] bromeó con los periodistas{{nbsp}}...}} As part of his joke campaign, Quispe invited the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Gabriela Montaño, to serve as his running mate, a proposition the MAS legislator called "idiotic."{{Cite news |date=26 November 2018 |title=Quispe invita formalmente a Montaño para ser su 'vice' |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Formally Invites Montaño to Be His Running Mate |work=El País |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Tarija |url=https://elpais.bo/nacional/20181126_quispe-invita-formalmente-a-montano-para-ser-su-vice.html |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815163938/https://elpais.bo/nacional/20181126_quispe-invita-formalmente-a-montano-para-ser-su-vice.html |archive-date=15 August 2022}} Given the rejection, Quispe later selected Juana Calle, former mama t'alla of CONAMAQ, as his vice-presidential companion.{{Cite news |date=28 November 2018 |title=Rafael Quispe presenta candidatura por el MAS para las primarias en medio de chicotazos |language=es |trans-title=In the Midst of Whipping, Rafael Quispe Presents His Candidacy for the MAS Primary |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/rafael-quispe-presenta-candidatura-por-el-mas-para-las-primarias-en-medio-de-chicotazos-393206 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815164106/https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/rafael-quispe-presenta-candidatura-por-el-mas-para-las-primarias-en-medio-de-chicotazos-393206 |archive-date=15 August 2022}}

Quispe's presidential bid was controversial amongst MAS partisans, with the legislator denouncing multiple threats to his life throughout the primary campaign, for which he requested police protection.{{Cite news |date=1 December 2018 |title=Rafael Quispe denuncia que recibe amenazas de muerte |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Denounces That He Received Death Threats |work=El País |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Tarija |url=https://elpais.bo/nacional/20181201_rafael-quispe-denuncia-que-recibe-amenazas-de-muerte.html |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815164226/https://elpais.bo/nacional/20181201_rafael-quispe-denuncia-que-recibe-amenazas-de-muerte.html |archive-date=15 August 2022}} From Omasuyos Province, leaders of the Red Ponchos—an indigenous militia—threatened to submit Quispe to "community justice" should he attempt to campaign in the region.{{Cite news |date=4 December 2018 |title=Ponchos Rojos amenazan a Mesa y Cárdenas con 'justicia comunitaria' |language=es |trans-title=Red Ponchos Threaten Mesa and Cárdenas with "Community Justice" |work=Los Tiempos |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20181204/ponchos-rojos-amenazan-mesa-cardenas-justicia-comunitaria |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113123748/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20181204/ponchos-rojos-amenazan-mesa-cardenas-justicia-comunitaria |archive-date=13 November 2019}} In response, Quispe, donning his own black poncho, challenged the militiamen to a whip duel, saying, "let's see who whips harder."{{Cite news |date=5 December 2018 |title=Quispe desafía a los Ponchos Rojos a enfrentarse 'chicote a chicote' |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Challenges the Red Ponchos to Face Him "Whip to Whip" |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/rafael-quispe-desafia-a-los-ponchos-rojos-a-enfrentarse-34chicote-a-chicote-34-en-la-plaza-murillo-393389 |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815164344/https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/rafael-quispe-desafia-a-los-ponchos-rojos-a-enfrentarse-34chicote-a-chicote-34-en-la-plaza-murillo-393389 |archive-date=15 August 2022 |quote=...{{nbsp}}quieren chicotearme y yo les digo, haber quién chicotea más fuerte.}} The conflict reemerged months later when, in the midst of verbal attacks, Quispe was nearly whipped outside of parliament by a group of Red Ponchos.{{Cite news |date=28 June 2019 |title=Ponchos Rojos agreden a Quispe y este les desafía |language=es |trans-title=Red Ponchos Attack Quispe and He Challenges Them |work=El Diario |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.pub.eldiario.net/noticias/2019/2019_06/nt190628/politica.php?n=7 |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815182214/https://www.pub.eldiario.net/noticias/2019/2019_06/nt190628/politica.php?n=7 |archive-date=15 August 2022}} The following day, he personally traveled to Achacachi to summon them to a duel, but the challenge was not met. "They've chickened out," he stated before returning to La Paz.{{Cite news |date=28 June 2019 |title=Quispe fue a Achacachi a asumir su reto, pero los 'Ponchos Rojos' afines al MAS, no |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Traveled to Achacachi to Take Up His Challenge, but the MAS-Aligned "Red Ponchos" Didn't |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/quispe-fue-achacachi-a-asumir-su-reto-pero-los-34ponchos-rojos-34-afines-al-mas-no-398716 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708140709/https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/quispe-fue-achacachi-a-asumir-su-reto-pero-los-34ponchos-rojos-34-afines-al-mas-no-398716 |archive-date=8 July 2019}} Ultimately, Quispe's campaign led the MAS's Ethics Court to officially expel him from the party, with the TSE removing his name from the MAS's electoral roll in early December, thus disqualifying him from primarying Morales.{{Cite news |date=14 December 2018 |title=TSE borró a Rafael Quispe de la militancia del MAS |language=es |trans-title=TSE Removed Rafael Quispe from the MAS's Ranks |work=Los Tiempos |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20181214/tse-borro-rafael-quispe-militancia-del-mas |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113121505/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20181214/tse-borro-rafael-quispe-militancia-del-mas |archive-date=13 November 2019}}

Nearing the election date, Quispe warned that if Morales won reelection to a fourth term, he and many others would not recognize the results. Quispe pointed to a constitutional referendum rejecting the abolishment of terms limits to justify his view of Morales as an "illegal candidate," warning that should the president win, "the only way to remove [him] from the [presidential] palace [will be] with mobilizations, with blockades, and with blood."{{Cite news |date=7 October 2019 |title=Quispe dice que no reconocerá si Evo gana: 'La única forma de sacar de Palacio es con sangre' |language=es |trans-title=Quispe States That He Will Not Recognize Evo's Victory: "The Only Way to Get Him Out of the Palace Is Through Blood" |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://erbol.com.bo/nacional/quispe-dice-que-no-reconocer%C3%A1-si-evo-gana-%E2%80%9Cla-%C3%BAnica-forma-de-sacar-de-palacio-es-con-sangre |url-status=live |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209185940/https://erbol.com.bo/nacional/quispe-dice-que-no-reconocer%C3%A1-si-evo-gana-%E2%80%9Cla-%C3%BAnica-forma-de-sacar-de-palacio-es-con-sangre |archive-date=9 December 2019}} Quispe's statements preceded broader unrest in the country, with allegations of electoral fraud sparking mass protests nationwide, culminating in Morales's resignation just over a month later.{{Cite news |date=11 November 2019 |title=Evo Morales renuncia a la presidencia de Bolivia y denuncia un golpe de Estado |language=es |trans-title=Evo Morales Resigns the Presidency of Bolivia and Denounces a Coup |work=BBC Mundo |publication-place=London |url=https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-50370125 |url-status=live |access-date=2 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220410042135/https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-50370125 |archive-date=10 April 2022}}

File:Inauguration of Rafael Quispe as Director of the Indigenous Development Fund. 26 November 2019, Ministry of the Presidency, La Paz. (51913838667).jpg

Shortly after Morales's removal from office, his successor, transitional president Jeanine Áñez, appointed Quispe to serve as general executive director of the Indigenous Development Fund, a move interpreted as a gesture towards the country's indigenous community, whose relationship with Morales was mixed.{{Cite news |last=Reglero |first=Luis Ángel |date=26 November 2019 |title=El peculiar 'Tata' Quispe toma las riendas del Fondo Indígena de Bolivia |language=es |trans-title=The Peculiar "Tata" Quispe Takes the Reins of the Bolivian Indigenous Fund |agency=EFE |location=La Paz |publication-place=Madrid |url=https://www.efe.com/efe/america/politica/el-peculiar-tata-quispe-toma-las-riendas-del-fondo-indigena-de-bolivia/20000035-4119895 |url-status=dead |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191129042945/https://www.efe.com/efe/america/politica/el-peculiar-tata-quispe-toma-las-riendas-del-fondo-indigena-de-bolivia/20000035-4119895 |archive-date=29 November 2019}} In his inaugural speech, Quispe pledged to "put the Indigenous Fund in order," continuing projects benefitting indigenous communities while at the same time "unmask[ing] those bad leaders who have used and abused the economic resources of this prestigious institution."{{Cite news |date=27 November 2019 |title='Tata' Quispe asume mando del FONDIOC |language=es |trans-title="Tata" Quispe Takes Command of the FONDIOC |work=El Alteño |url=http://www.elalteno.com.bo/ciudad/20191127/tata-quispe-asume-mando-del-fondioc |url-status=live |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191127234340/http://www.elalteno.com.bo/ciudad/20191127/tata-quispe-asume-mando-del-fondioc |archive-date=27 November 2019 |quote='Me estoy proponiendo poner orden al Fondo Indígena y desenmascarar a esos malos dirigentes que han hecho uso y abuso de los recursos económicos de esta prestigiosa institución' declaró [Quispe].}} In that regard, Quispe announced an immediate audit of all ongoing projects with the aim of recovering embezzled assets and prosecuting corrupt authorities. "We are going to reconstitute the Indigenous Fund," he stated.{{Cite news |last=Aguilar |first=Madeleyne |date=27 November 2019 |title='Del FONDIOC se han robado más de mil millones de bolivianos' |language=es |trans-title="More than a Million Bolivianos Have Been Robbed from the FONDIOC" |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/del-fondioc-se-han-robado-mas-de-mil-millones-de-bolivianos-KCPS238662 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=16 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191128175333/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/11/27/del-fondioc-se-han-robado-mas-de-mil-millones-de-bolivianos-238662.html |archive-date=28 November 2019 |quote=Vamos a reconstituir el Fondo Indígena{{nbsp}}... para que sirva al verdadero indígena originario campesino, a los ayllus, a las markas, y a las comunidades.}}

File:Inauguration of Rafael Quispe as Director of the Indigenous Development Fund. 26 November 2019, Ministry of Communication, La Paz. (51915201565).png

As head of the Indigenous Fund, Quispe oversaw the reactivation of the body's long-stalled embezzlement inquiry, expanding the case to include many of Morales's most influential former ministers. In December, the Fund submitted a request to revoke the house arrest granted to former minister Nemesia Achacollo; judicial authorities complied, transferring her to Miraflores prison as a measure of preventative detention.{{Cite news |date=10 December 2019 |title=El FDI pide que Achacollo vuelva a prisión |language=es |trans-title=The FDI Demands That Achacollo Return to Prison |work=Correo del Sur |publication-place=Sucre |url=https://correodelsur.com/politica/20191210_el-fdi-pide-que-achacollo-vuelva-a-prision.html |url-status=live |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513210748/https://correodelsur.com/politica/20191210_el-fdi-pide-que-achacollo-vuelva-a-prision.html |archive-date=13 May 2021}}{{Cite news |date=18 December 2019 |title=Revocan arresto domiciliario de Achacollo y la envían a la cárcel de Miraflores |language=es |trans-title=Judge Revokes Achacollo's House Arrest and Sends Her to Miraflores Prison |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/seguridad/revocan-arresto-domiciliario-de-achacollo-y-la-envian-la-carcel-de-miraflores-403008 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817014637/https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/seguridad/revocan-arresto-domiciliario-de-achacollo-y-la-envian-la-carcel-de-miraflores-403008 |archive-date=17 August 2022}} Early into the new year, Quispe expanded the investigation to include former members of the Indigenous Fund's board of supervisors, a body presided over by former ministers {{ill|Juan Ramón Quintana|es}}, Carlos Romero, and Luis Arce.{{Cite news |date=6 January 2020 |title=Quispe anuncia procesos contra Quintana, Romero y Arce Catacora por el caso FONDIOC |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Announces Judicial Processes Against Quintana, Romero, and Arce Catacora for the FONDIOC Case |work=Éxito Noticias |url=https://exitonoticias.com.bo/index.php/2020/01/06/quispe-anuncia-procesos-contra-quintana-romero-y-arce-catacora-por-el-caso-fondioc/ |url-status=live |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817014330/https://exitonoticias.com.bo/index.php/2020/01/06/quispe-anuncia-procesos-contra-quintana-romero-y-arce-catacora-por-el-caso-fondioc/ |archive-date=17 August 2022}} The latter, notably, had been selected as the MAS's presidential candidate, drawing complaints of political persecution.{{Cite news |last=Montero |first=Baldwin |date=4 February 2020 |title=Arce cuestiona el 'silencio' del TSE ante la 'persecución política y el acoso judicial' |language=es |trans-title=Arce Questions the TSE's "Silence" in the Face of "Political Persecution and Judicial Harassment" |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/02/04/arce-cuestiona-el-silencio-del-tse-ante-la-persecucion-politica-y-el-acoso-judicial/ |url-status=live |access-date=13 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314064013/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/02/04/arce-cuestiona-el-silencio-del-tse-ante-la-persecucion-politica-y-el-acoso-judicial/ |archive-date=14 March 2022}} Finally, in February, Felipa Huanca was arrested after immigration authorities accused her of attempting to flee the country. In its reporting of the event, El Deber noted Quispe's role in Huanca's apprehension, stating: "the former Bartolina was relentless [against Quispe], and now the tables have turned."{{Cite news |last=Tedesqui Vargas |first=Luis Marcelo |date=27 February 2020 |title=Detienen a Felipa Huanca por supuesto desfalco al Fondo Indígena |language=es |trans-title=Felipa Huanca Is Arrested for Alleged Embezzlement of the Indigenous Fund |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/detienen-a-felipa-huanca-por-supuesto-desfalco-al-fondo-indigena_167799 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200813064727/https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/detienen-a-felipa-huanca-por-supuesto-desfalco-al-fondo-indigena_167799 |archive-date=13 August 2020 |quote=La exbartolina fue implacable con el director del Fondioc y ahora se dio vuelta la tortilla.}} Ultimately, however, prosecutors failed to provide sufficient evidence to justify Huanca's continued incarceration as a flight risk, leading to her release less than forty-eight hours later.{{Cite news |date=29 February 2020 |title=Felipa Huanca queda en libertad por el Caso Fondo Indígena |language=es |trans-title=Felipa Huanca Is Released for the Indigenous Fund Case |work=La Patria |publication-place=Oruro |url=https://lapatria.bo/2020/02/29/felipa-huanca-queda-en-libertad-por-el-caso-fondo-indigena/ |access-date=16 August 2022}}

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Áñez administration imposed a mandatory quarantine on the population, including a strict prohibition on public gatherings.{{Cite news |last=Serna Doque |first=Santiago |date=26 March 2020 |title=En Bolivia inició el estado de emergencia sanitaria por el COVID-19 |language=es |trans-title=In Bolivia, a State of Health Emergency Begins Due to COVID-19 |agency=Anadolu Agency |publication-place=Ankara |url=https://www.aa.com.tr/es/mundo/en-bolivia-inici%C3%B3-el-estado-de-emergencia-sanitaria-por-el-covid-19-/1780656 |url-status=live |access-date=10 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212111317/https://www.aa.com.tr/es/mundo/en-bolivia-inici%C3%B3-el-estado-de-emergencia-sanitaria-por-el-covid-19-/1780656 |archive-date=12 February 2022}} In mid-April, the Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation into Quispe on allegations that he violated this norm by meeting with community leaders in San Pedro de Curahuara,{{efn-lg|Initial sources indicated that the meeting took place in Marquirivi; however, the mayor of Achocalla—the encompassing municipality—denied this.{{Cite news |date=13 April 2020 |title=Alcalde Ninaja aclara que reunión donde participó Rafael Quispe no fue en Achocalla |trans-title=Mayor Ninaja Clarifies That the Meeting in Which Rafael Quispe Participated Was Not in Achocalla |language=es |work=ATB |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.atb.com.bo/sociedad/alcalde-ninaja-aclara-que-reuni%C3%B3n-donde-particip%C3%B3-rafael-quispe-no-fue-en-achocalla |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124023302/https://www.atb.com.bo/sociedad/alcalde-ninaja-aclara-que-reuni%C3%B3n-donde-particip%C3%B3-rafael-quispe-no-fue-en-achocalla |archive-date=24 January 2021}} Ensuing sources indicated that San Pedro de Curahuara was the actual locale in which the conference was held.{{Cite news |date=12 April 2020 |title=Murillo insta a Quispe a renunciar y él le responde que esa decisión es de la Presidenta |language=es |trans-title=Murillo Urges Quispe to Resign and He Replies That the Decision Is Up to the President |work=Opinión |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/pais/murillo-insta-quispe-renunciar-responde-decision-es-presidenta/20200412110822761700.html |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817183557/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/pais/murillo-insta-quispe-renunciar-responde-decision-es-presidenta/20200412110822761700.html |archive-date=17 August 2022}}}} for which he faced being charged for crimes against public health. Quispe denied any wrongdoing, assuring that the event had been organized to convey pandemic prevention measures and that he had not expected such high attendance.{{Cite news |last1=Chuquimia |first1=Marco Antonio |last2=Melendres Galvis |first2=Miguel Angel |date=14 April 2020 |title='Tata' Quispe compareció ante la FELCC y se salva de las celdas policiales |language=es |trans-title="Tata" Quispe Appears Before the FELCC and Is Spared from Police Cells |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/tata-quispe-comparecio-ante-la-felcc-y-se-salva-de-las-celdas-policiales_174559 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220607134228/https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/tata-quispe-comparecio-ante-la-felcc-y-se-salva-de-las-celdas-policiales_174559 |archive-date=7 June 2022}} Nonetheless, the scandal led Minister of Government Arturo Murillo to publicly request Quispe's resignation, an action he refused to take, regarding it as an admission of guilt. "It is not worth resigning because{{Nbsp}}... I have not committed any infraction," he insisted. Instead, Quispe left the decision in Áñez's hands, arguing that only she had the authority to remove him.{{Cite news |date=12 April 2020 |title=Quispe dice que no rompió la cuarentena y que su designación depende de Áñez |language=es |trans-title=Quispe States That He Did Not Break Quarantine and That His Removal Depends on Áñez |work=Los Tiempos |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20200412/quispe-dice-que-no-rompio-cuarentena-que-su-designacion-depende-anez |url-status=live |access-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200416132201/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20200412/quispe-dice-que-no-rompio-cuarentena-que-su-designacion-depende-anez |archive-date=16 April 2020 |quote='...{{nbsp}}no amerita hacer la renuncia porque{{nbsp}}... no he cometido ninguna infracción{{nbsp}}... La Presidenta puede decirme 'usted deje el cargo', pero{{nbsp}}... no dependo del Ministro de Gobierno', dijo [Quispe]{{nbsp}}...}}

File:Inauguration of Rafael Quispe Vice Minister of Communication. 13 October 2020, Vice Ministry of Communication, La Paz. (51914686311).jpg

The president formally nullified Quispe's appointment on 8 May, bringing his term to an end just over six months after he first assumed office.{{Cite news |date=9 May 2020 |title=Destituyen a Rafael Quispe como director del Fondo Indígena y anuncian a Germán Huanca como sucesor |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Is Dismissed as Director of the Indigenous Fund and Germán Huanca Is Announced As His Successor |work=La Patria |publication-place=Oruro |url=https://impresa.lapatria.bo/noticia/1016992 |url-access=registration |access-date=17 August 2022 }} In Quispe's place, Germán Huanca was initially designated to head the Indigenous Fund, though the appointment was later retracted. Nonetheless, Quispe opted to vacate his office anyway, stating that he would not "cling on to the position."{{Cite news |date=11 May 2020 |title=Quispe dice que no se 'agarra' del cargo y que Áñez se dejó influenciar |language=es |trans-title=Quispe States That He Won't "Cling On" to His Position and That Áñez Let Herself Be Influenced |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/quispe-dice-que-no-se-quot-agarraquot-del-cargo-y-que-anez-se-dejo-influenciar-BEPS255163 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200515130819/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/5/11/quispe-dice-que-no-se-agarra-del-cargo-que-anez-se-dejo-influenciar-255163.html |archive-date=15 May 2020}} Even so, he lamented his removal, expressing his view that Áñez had allowed herself to be influenced by Murillo. In a later editorial, Página Siete noted that Quispe's removal constituted "the first of at least four reliefs that are attributed to Murillo's power to grant or take away positions within the government."{{Cite news |last=Chuquimia |first=Leny |date=4 October 2020 |title=Murillo detrás del trono: Unas 9 falsedades y 4 demandas legales |language=es |trans-title=Murillo Behind the Throne: Some 9 Falsehoods and 4 Legal Claims |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/10/4/murillo-detras-del-trono-unas-falsedades-demandas-legales-270311.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=1 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201164511/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/10/4/murillo-detras-del-trono-unas-falsedades-demandas-legales-270311.html |archive-date=1 December 2021 |quote=[Quispe] fue [el primero] de al menos cuatro relevaciones que se atribuyen al poder de Murillo para dar o quitar cargos dentro del Gobierno.}}

Following his removal, Minister Eliane Capobianco announced that Quispe would continue to work with the government, playing a minor role within the Ministry of Rural Development.{{Cite news |last=Sánchez |first=César |date=10 May 2020 |title=El gobierno anuncia que Quispe asumirá 'nuevos desafíos' en el Ministerio de Desarrollo Rural |language=es |trans-title=The Government Announces That Quispe Will Take Up "New Challenges" in the Ministry of Rural Development |agency=Oxígeno.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.oxigeno.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/42491 |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817194110/https://www.oxigeno.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/42491 |archive-date=17 August 2022}} Quispe rejected the opportunity, stating that if the government truly believed his crime serious enough to remove him from the Indigenous Fund, they should not be considering him for a different position.{{Cite news |last=Sánchez |first=César |date=11 May 2020 |title=Rafael Quispe descarta seguir trabajando en el gobierno, pero no rompe su alianza con Jeanine Áñez |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Rules Out Continuing to Work in the Government, but Does Not Break His Alliance with Jeanine Áñez |agency=Oxígeno.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.oxigeno.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/42499 |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817194310/https://www.oxigeno.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/42499 |archive-date=17 August 2022}} In an interview with Radio Fides, Quispe indicated that he would take the opportunity to take a break from politics, returning home to herd his goats "because goats are loyal."{{Cite news |last1=Guarachi |first1=Ángel |last2=Farfán |first2=Williams |date=8 May 2020 |title=Quispe entregará su oficina el lunes: 'Me voy a componer canciones y pastear mis chivos' |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Will Hand Over His Office on Monday: "I'm Going to Compose Songs and Herd My Goats" |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/05/08/quispe-entregara-su-oficina-el-lunes-me-voy-a-componer-canciones-y-pastear-mis-chivos/ |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614224856/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/05/08/quispe-entregara-su-oficina-el-lunes-me-voy-a-componer-canciones-y-pastear-mis-chivos/ |archive-date=14 June 2020}} However, less than a month later, Quispe returned to work with the government, serving as director general of coordination with social movements.{{Cite news |last=Sánchez |first=César |date=8 June 2020 |title=Rafael Quispe vuelve al gobierno y es el nuevo Director de Coordinación con Movimientos Sociales |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Returns to Government and Is the New Director of Coordination with Social Movements |agency=Oxígeno.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.oxigeno.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/42997 |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220803013728/https://www.oxigeno.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/42997 |archive-date=3 August 2022}} Quispe held that post until early October, when he was appointed to serve as vice minister of decolonization, a position he exercised for just under a month, resigning on 4 November to inaugurate his campaign headquarters with intent to contest the La Paz governorship.{{Cite news |last=Medina |first=Eduardo |date=13 October 2020 |title=Rafael Quispe es designado como nuevo viceministro de Descolonización |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Is Appointed As the New Vice Minister of Decolonization |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/10/13/rafael-quispe-es-designado-como-nuevo-viceministro-de-descolonizacion/ |url-status=live |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201022024706/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/10/13/rafael-quispe-es-designado-como-nuevo-viceministro-de-descolonizacion/ |archive-date=22 October 2020}}{{Cite news |last=Melendres Galvis |first=Miguel Angel |date=4 November 2020 |title='Tata' Quispe renuncia a su viceministerio e inaugura su Casa de Campaña para las subnacionales |language=es |trans-title="Tata" Quispe Resigns from His Vice Ministry and Inaugurates His Campaign House for the Subnationals |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/tata-quispe-renuncia-a-su-viceministerio-e-inaugura-su-casa-de-campana-para-las-subnacionales_207404 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201121050401/https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/tata-quispe-renuncia-a-su-viceministerio-e-inaugura-su-casa-de-campana-para-las-subnacionales_207404 |archive-date=21 November 2020}}

{{Main|2021 La Paz gubernatorial election}}

Quispe's gubernatorial aspirations stemmed as far back as 2014, when he unsuccessfully sought UN's support to contest the next year's election. Following his break with UN, Quispe began the process of structuring his own political organization. According to Quispe, while UN had some support in La Paz and El Alto, "the provinces have not yet been conquered." With that in mind, and in coordination with Santamaría, the indigenous legislator spent much of his time touring the department's rural areas with a view toward gaining support to seek the governorship.{{Cite news |last=Carballo |first=María |date=27 July 2018 |title=Quispe se aleja de UD y lidera un grupo que busca la gobernación |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Distances Himself from UD and Leads a Group That Seeks the Governor's Office |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/quispe-se-aleja-de-ud-y-lidera-un-grupo-que-busca-la-gobernacion-MKPS188598 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727073804/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2018/7/27/quispe-se-aleja-de-ud-lidera-un-grupo-que-busca-la-gobernacion-188598.html |archive-date=27 July 2018}} In an interview with El Alteño, Quispe affirmed that "renewal of leadership" would be a core feature of his political project, adding that "Indians cannot be on the sidelines."{{Cite news |last=Charca Huasco |first=Jorge |date=13 November 2017 |title=Concejales y gente del ex-MSM serán parte del nuevo partido de Quispe |language=es |trans-title=Councillors and People from the Former MSM Will Be Part of Quispe's New Party |work=El Alteño |url=http://www.elalteno.com.bo/ciudad/20171113/concejales-y-gente-del-ex-msm-seran-parte-del-nuevo-partido-de-quispe |url-status=live |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220807011714/http://www.elalteno.com.bo/ciudad/20171113/concejales-y-gente-del-ex-msm-seran-parte-del-nuevo-partido-de-quispe |archive-date=7 August 2022}} In late 2018, the Departmental Electoral Tribunal authorized the civic group Venceremos to participate in local elections. The group, led by Alteño Municipal Councillor Óscar Huanca, profiled himself for El Alto's mayoralty, with Quispe as a candidate for governor.{{Cite news |date=20 October 2018 |title=Venceremos postulará a Huanca como alcalde de El Alto y a Rafael Quispe como Gobernador de La Paz |language=es |trans-title=Venceremos to Nominate Huanca for Mayor of El Alto and Rafael Quispe for Governor of La Paz |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.urgente.bo/noticia/venceremos-postular%C3%A1-huanca-como-alcalde-de-el-alto-y-rafael-quispe-como-gobernador-de-la |url-status=live |access-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813014521/https://www.urgente.bo/noticia/venceremos-postular%C3%A1-huanca-como-alcalde-de-el-alto-y-rafael-quispe-como-gobernador-de-la |archive-date=13 August 2022}}

File:(Logo) Somos Pueblo.svg

By 2019, however, Quispe appeared to have moved away from Huanca, having instead founded his own political organization, Somos Pueblo.{{Cite news |date=22 March 2022 |title='Fui candidata del Tata Rafael Quispe, no del Negro Arias', afirma concejala de La Paz |language=es |trans-title="I Was Tata Quispe's Candidate, Not Negro Arias's," Affirms La Paz Councillor |work=Público.bo |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://publico.bo/politica/concejala-de-la-paz-fui-la-candidata-del-tata-rafael-quispe-no-del-negro-arias/ |url-status=live |access-date=31 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220325172835/https://publico.bo/politica/concejala-de-la-paz-fui-la-candidata-del-tata-rafael-quispe-no-del-negro-arias/ |archive-date=25 March 2022 |quote=Nosotros construimos Somos Pueblo hace tres años{{nbsp}}...}} In March, he and Santamaría signed an alliance between Somos Pueblo and the MDS to support the presidential candidacy of Oscar Ortiz.{{Cite news |date=25 March 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe y Santamaría firman alianza con Costas para apoyar a Oscar Ortiz |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe and Santamaría Sign Alliance with Costas to Back Oscar Ortiz |work=Los Tiempos |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20190325/rafael-quispe-santamaria-firman-alianza-costas-apoyar-oscar-ortiz |url-status=live |access-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113085011/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20190325/rafael-quispe-santamaria-firman-alianza-costas-apoyar-oscar-ortiz |archive-date=13 November 2019}} When Ortiz's running mate, Edwin Rodríguez, withdrew from the race, Quispe was profiled as a potential replacement vice-presidential candidate, though ultimately, Deputy Shirley Franco got the nod.{{Cite news |date=17 July 2019 |title=El nombre de Quispe aparece para posible 'vice' de Ortiz |language=es |trans-title=Quispe's Name Is Considered As Ortiz's Possible Running Mate |work=El País |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Tarija |url=https://elpais.bo/nacional/20190717_el-nombre-de-quispe-aparece-para-posible-vice-de-ortiz.html |url-status=live |access-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302141725/https://elpais.bo/nacional/20190717_el-nombre-de-quispe-aparece-para-posible-vice-de-ortiz.html |archive-date=2 March 2021}}{{Cite news |date=15 August 2019 |title=Shirley Franco sustituye a Edwin Rodríguez en Bolivia Dice NO |language=es |trans-title=Shirley Franco Replaces Edwin Rodríguez in Bolivia Says NO |work=El Potosí |agency=El Deber |location=Cochabamba |url=https://elpotosi.net/nacional/20190815_shirley-franco-sustituye-a-edwin-rodriguez-en-bolivia-dice-no.html |url-status=live |access-date=8 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930025736/https://elpotosi.net/nacional/20190815_shirley-franco-sustituye-a-edwin-rodriguez-en-bolivia-dice-no.html |archive-date=30 September 2020}} Instead, the MDS agreed to back Quispe's gubernatorial aspirations. In September, Quispe officially launched his La Paz gubernatorial campaign as part of Somos Pueblo Demócrata, an alliance legally registered by the MDS and New Social Option, a local political organization.{{Cite news |last=Ariñez |first=Rubén |date=30 September 2019 |title=Quispe lanza su candidatura para la gobernación de La Paz por el frente Pueblo |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Launches His Candidacy for Governor of La Paz as Part of the Pueblo Party |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2019/09/30/quispe-lanza-su-candidatura-para-la-gobernacion-de-la-paz-por-el-frente-pueblo/ |url-status=live |access-date=3 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813170547/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2019/09/30/quispe-lanza-su-candidatura-para-la-gobernacion-de-la-paz-por-el-frente-pueblo/ |archive-date=13 August 2022}} However, the ensuing political crisis delayed the holding of subnational elections until new general elections could occur. In the interim, Quispe maintained his support for the MDS, aligning Somos Pueblo with Áñez's presidential campaign.{{Cite news |date=4 March 2020 |title=Jeanine Áñez y Rafael Quispe firmaron alianza de cara a los comicios de mayo |language=es |trans-title=Jeanine Áñez and Rafael Quispe Signed an Alliance for the May Elections |work=ATB |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.atb.com.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/jeanine-%C3%A1%C3%B1ez-y-rafael-quispe-firmaron-alianza-de-cara-los-comicios-de-mayo |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200305142824/https://www.atb.com.bo/pol%C3%ADtica/jeanine-%C3%A1%C3%B1ez-y-rafael-quispe-firmaron-alianza-de-cara-los-comicios-de-mayo |archive-date=5 March 2020}} Quispe's status as an Aymara indigenous ally of the transitional government led him to be again considered as a viable potential running mate, an idea pushed by CONAMAQ.{{Cite news |date=27 January 2020 |title=Viceministro Gallego quiere a Rafael Quispe candidato a 'vice' con Áñez |language=es |trans-title=Vice Minister Gallego Wants Rafael Quispe As Áñez's Running Mate |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://erbol.com.bo/nacional/viceministro-gallego-quiere-rafael-quispe-candidato-%E2%80%98vice%E2%80%99-con-a%C3%B1ez |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200229152845/https://erbol.com.bo/nacional/viceministro-gallego-quiere-rafael-quispe-candidato-%E2%80%98vice%E2%80%99-con-a%C3%B1ez |archive-date=29 February 2020}}{{Cite news |last=Escóbar |first=Luis |date=28 January 2020 |title=Suenan Revilla, Longaric y Quispe para vicepresidenciable de la alianza Juntos |language=es |trans-title=Revilla, Longaric, and Quispe Contend to Be the Vice-Presidential Candidate of the Juntos Alliance |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/suenan-revilla-longaric-y-quispe-para-vicepresidenciable-de-la-alianza-juntos-OFPS244820 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200128073424/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/1/28/suenan-revilla-longaric-quispe-para-vicepresidenciable-de-la-alianza-juntos-244820.html |archive-date=28 January 2020}} Áñez eventually chose Doria Medina to accompany her on the ticket.{{Cite news |date=31 January 2020 |title=Doria Medina será el acompañante de Áñez en las elecciones |language=es |trans-title=Doria Medina to Be Áñez's Companion in the Elections |work=El Potosí |agency=Los Tiempos |url=https://elpotosi.net/nacional/20200131_doria-medina-sera-el-acompanante-de-anez-en-las-elecciones.html |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817230454/https://elpotosi.net/nacional/20200131_doria-medina-sera-el-acompanante-de-anez-en-las-elecciones.html |archive-date=17 August 2022}}

Following the October general elections, Quispe relaunched his gubernatorial campaign, joining forces with municipalist Iván Arias to form For the Common Good – Somos Pueblo (PBCSP), an alliance between their two political organizations. As both fronts lacked legal registration, PBCSP was sponsored by Suma Escoma, a small local organization, as well as the MDS. The pair jointly officialized their candidacies for mayor and governor, respectively, on 28 December.{{Cite news |date=25 December 2020 |title=El TSE habilita a Somos Pueblo que postula a Rafael Quispe para la Gobernación de La Paz |language=es |trans-title=The TSE Approves Somos Pueblo, Which Nominates Rafael Quispe for Governor of La Paz |work=UNITEL |agency=Agencia Boliviana de Información |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://unitel.bo/politica/el-tse-habilita-a-somos-pueblo-que-postula-a-rafael-quispe-para-la-gobernacion-de-la-paz_140651 |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624055448/https://unitel.bo/politica/el-tse-habilita-a-somos-pueblo-que-postula-a-rafael-quispe-para-la-gobernacion-de-la-paz_140651 |archive-date=24 June 2021}}{{Cite news |date=28 December 2020 |title=Quispe y Arias lanzan en conjunto sus candidaturas con Somos Pueblo |language=es |trans-title=Quispe and Arias Jointly Launch Their Candidacies as Part of Somos Pueblo |work=Los Tiempos |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20201228/quispe-arias-lanzan-conjunto-sus-candidaturas-somos-pueblo |url-status=live |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201228152505/https://www.lostiempos.com/actualidad/pais/20201228/quispe-arias-lanzan-conjunto-sus-candidaturas-somos-pueblo |archive-date=28 December 2020}} Quispe's innovative campaign was unique in its incorporation of social media, including TikTok, as a factor in its electoral strategy. The candidate rejected political pamphleteering as "the work of old politicians," gearing his social media campaign towards younger and urban sectors of the population, considering them to be the "hidden vote of the middle class." Conversely, Quispe's ground campaign brought him to many of the department's more rural areas, where he made use of his Aymara language proficiency to put forth a series of policy proposals aimed at aiding local indigenous peoples, a group he considered largely "abandoned."{{Cite news |date=23 November 2020 |title=Rafael Quispe anuncia una campaña 'innovadora' y sin panfletos |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Announces "Innovative" Campaign Without Pamphleteering |work=Página Siete |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/rafael-quispe-anuncia-una-campana-innovadora-y-sin-panfletos-HGPS275828 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201123210055/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/11/23/rafael-quispe-anuncia-una-campana-innovadora-sin-panfletos-275828.html |archive-date=23 November 2020}}{{Cite news |last=Salazar |first=Yolanda |date=26 February 2021 |title=Redes sociales, la fuerza en la campaña del indígena boliviano Rafael Quispe |language=es |trans-title=Social Networks: The Strength of Indigenous Bolivian Rafael Quispe's Campaign |agency=EFE |location=La Paz |publication-place=Madrid |url=https://www.efe.com/efe/america/politica/redes-sociales-la-fuerza-en-campana-del-indigena-boliviano-rafael-quispe/20000035-4475008 |url-status=dead |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210423142936/https://www.efe.com/efe/america/politica/redes-sociales-la-fuerza-en-campana-del-indigena-boliviano-rafael-quispe/20000035-4475008 |archive-date=23 April 2021}}

Midway through the campaign, Quispe faced a reactivation in the process against him opened by Felipa Huanca. In February, judicial authorities found him guilty of political harassment, sentencing him to two years in San Pedro prison. Quispe denounced the conviction as an act of political sabotage aimed at disqualifying his candidacy, with his lawyer, Eduardo León, stating that he had observed "obvious" pressure from the government. Despite the sentence, Quispe's candidacy—and continued freedom—was spared pending appeal.{{Cite news |date=13 February 2021 |title=Un líder indígena en Bolivia que realizó denuncias por corrupción, fue condenado a dos años de cárcel |language=es |trans-title=An Indigenous Leader in Bolivia Who Denounced Corruption Was Sentenced to Two Years in Prison |work=Infobae |publication-place=Buenos Aires |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/america-latina/2021/02/13/un-lider-indigena-en-bolivia-que-realizo-denuncias-por-corrupcion-fue-condenado-a-dos-anos-de-carcel/ |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213100606/https://www.infobae.com/america/america-latina/2021/02/13/un-lider-indigena-en-bolivia-que-realizo-denuncias-por-corrupcion-fue-condenado-a-dos-anos-de-carcel/ |archive-date=13 February 2021}}{{Cite news |last=Chuquimia |first=Marco Antonio |date=21 March 2022 |title=Emiten nueva orden de aprehensión en contra de Rafael 'Tata' Quispe |language=es |trans-title=Judge Issues a New Arrest Warrant Against Rafael "Tata" Quispe |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/emiten-nueva-orden-de-aprehension-en-contra-de-rafael-tata-quispe_271698 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511163046/https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/emiten-nueva-orden-de-aprehension-en-contra-de-rafael-tata-quispe_271698 |archive-date=11 May 2022 |quote=Rafael Quispe ya cuenta con una sentencia de dos años de presidio{{nbsp}}... La sentencia fue emitida en febrero de 2021, pero Quispe se libró de ir a prisión por el beneficio previsto en el Código Penal boliviano.}}

Ultimately, Quispe failed to attain enough votes to challenge the MAS in the second round, exiting third following the election with 22.44 percent of the popular vote, trailing behind Santos Quispe and Franklin Flores.{{Cite news |date=14 March 2021 |title=A Franklin Flores le faltó décimas e irá a segunda vuelta con Santos Quispe |language=es |trans-title=Franklin Flores Lacked a Few Tenths of the Vote and Will Go to the Second Round with Santos Quispe |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://erbol.com.bo/nacional/franklin-flores-le-falt%C3%B3-d%C3%A9cimas-e-ir%C3%A1-segunda-vuelta-con-santos-quispe |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210316052719/https://erbol.com.bo/nacional/franklin-flores-le-falt%C3%B3-d%C3%A9cimas-e-ir%C3%A1-segunda-vuelta-con-santos-quispe |archive-date=16 March 2021}} Following the election, Quispe refused to back either of the winning candidates, considering both Flores and Quispe to be effectively "the same," for which he expressed his intent to vote null.{{Cite news |last=Condori |first=Edwin |date=6 April 2021 |title=Rafael Quispe votará nulo porque cree que Santos Quispe y Franklin Flores 'son lo mismo' |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe Will Vote Null Because He Believes That Santos Quispe and Franklin Flores "Are the Same" |work=La Razón |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2021/04/06/rafael-quispe-votara-nulo-porque-cree-que-santos-quispe-y-franklin-flores-son-lo-mismo/ |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210428194306/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2021/04/06/rafael-quispe-votara-nulo-porque-cree-que-santos-quispe-y-franklin-flores-son-lo-mismo/ |archive-date=28 April 2021}} On election day, Quispe posted a picture of his ballot, displaying that he had drawn in an extra box for himself, for whom he cast his vote.{{Cite news |date=11 April 2021 |title=El 'Tata' Quispe no se siente representado y difunde imagen de voto nulo |language=es |trans-title=Feeling Unrepresented, "Tata" Quispe Releases an Image of His Null Vote |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/el-tata-quispe-no-se-siente-representado-y-difunde-imagen-de-voto-nulo_227625 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806185611/https://eldeber.com.bo/pais/el-tata-quispe-no-se-siente-representado-y-difunde-imagen-de-voto-nulo_227625 |archive-date=6 August 2022}} Following the election, Quispe announced his intent to retire from politics, assuring that his political cycle had concluded.{{Cite news |date=27 April 2022 |title=El 'Tata' Quispe cierra su ciclo en la política |language=es |trans-title="Tata" Quispe Closes His Cycle in Politics |work=Opinión |agency=Oxígeno.bo |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/pais/tata-quispe-cierra-ciclo-politica/20220427160951864531.html |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524174044/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/pais/tata-quispe-cierra-ciclo-politica/20220427160951864531.html |archive-date=24 May 2022}}

Quispe has defined himself as a figure without political origins, "neither left nor right [nor] center."{{Cite news |date=25 February 2019 |title=Rafael Quispe: Hago marketing político y la gente me conoce mejor |language=es |trans-title=Rafael Quispe: By Doing Political Marketing, the People Know Me Better |agency=Urgente.bo |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://urgente.bo/noticia/rafael-quispe-hago-marketing-pol%C3%ADtico-y-la-gente-me-conoce-mejor |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805175149/https://urgente.bo/noticia/rafael-quispe-hago-marketing-pol%C3%ADtico-y-la-gente-me-conoce-mejor |archive-date=5 August 2022 |quote=...{{nbsp}}yo no tengo orígenes políticos ni de izquierda ni derecha y centro.}} An opponent of both capitalism and socialism—which he described as effectively "the same" for their "extractive, consumerist, [and] developmentalist" principals—Quispe has advocated for an indigenous communitarian development model. He has promoted moving the country's economy away from its dependence on extractive industries, supporting a push towards clean energy within the framework of "respect for our Pachamama." In 2010, he lobbied the government to replace the Ministry of Environment and Water with a "Ministry of Pachamama," stating that it was the "only way to defend the rights of [Mother Earth]."{{Cite news |date=22 January 2010 |title=Indígenas le piden crear el Ministerio de la Pachamama |language=es |trans-title=Indigenous Peoples Ask Evo to Create the Ministry of Pachamama |work=Opinión |agency=ERBOL |publication-place=Cochabamba |url=https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/tendencias/indigenas-piden-crear-ministerio-pachamama/20100122191939341664.html |url-status=live |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806164000/https://www.opinion.com.bo/articulo/tendencias/indigenas-piden-crear-ministerio-pachamama/20100122191939341664.html |archive-date=6 August 2022}}

As with most modern Aymara,{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Uy8OAQAAMAAJ |title=Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities |publisher=Routledge |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-57958-468-9 |editor-last=Skutsch |editor-first=Carl |volume=1 |location=New York and London |pages=160 |language=en |editor-last2=Ryle |editor-first2=Martin}} Quispe practices a syncretic form of Christianity infused with Aymara indigenous beliefs. He has expressed faith in both God and Pachamama, stating that "leaving the house, we pray to God, but at the moment when you pass a large mountain{{Nbsp}}... we pray to Pachamama."{{Cite news |last=Baldivieso |first=Gina |date=1 December 2019 |title=Un aimara boliviano afirma que Evo Morales mantuvo estancados a los indígenas |language=es |trans-title=A Bolivian Aymara Affirms That Evo Morales Kept the Indigenous Peoples Stagnant |agency=EFE |location=La Paz |publication-place=Madrid |url=https://www.efe.com/efe/america/politica/un-aimara-boliviano-afirma-que-evo-morales-mantuvo-estancados-a-los-indigenas/20000035-4123235 |url-status=dead |access-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112014814/https://www.efe.com/efe/america/politica/un-aimara-boliviano-afirma-que-evo-morales-mantuvo-estancados-a-los-indigenas/20000035-4123235 |archive-date=12 November 2020 |quote=Saliendo de la casa, pedimos a Dios, pero en el momento en que pasas por un cerro grande{{nbsp}}... le pedimos a la Pachamama.}} In one viral instance, Quispe famously stated: "I fear only God... and my wife."{{Cite news |date=11 December 2018 |title='Miedo, solo a Dios... y a mi esposa', la respuesta viral del diputado Rafael Quispe |language=es |trans-title="I Fear Only God… and My Wife," Deputy Rafael Quispe's Viral Response |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/extra/miedo-solo-a-dios-y-a-mi-esposa-la-respuesta-viral-del-diputado-rafael-quispe_32384 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813222309/https://eldeber.com.bo/extra/miedo-solo-a-dios-y-a-mi-esposa-la-respuesta-viral-del-diputado-rafael-quispe_32384 |archive-date=13 August 2022}} Quispe is married to Rocío Patty, with whom he has lived in El Alto for over twenty years, together with their two children. According to Quispe, it was his wife who kept their family afloat during his tenure in CONAMAQ, while he continued to make an income working as a service driver during that time. He has criticized political leaders for leaving public office much richer than when they entered. Quispe has also been noted for his connection to El Alto's nightclub scene, having previously led the Association of Bars, Canteens, and Restaurants of El Alto. In 2015, Deputy María Eugenia Calcina accused him of being the owner of a network of bars and brothels in the city, a concept Quispe vehemently rejected as a politically motivated attack against his character.{{Cite news |date=8 October 2015 |title=Diputada de UN dice que Rafael Quispe sería propietario de bares y lenocinios |language=es |trans-title=UN Deputy Alleges That Rafael Quispe Is the Owner of Bars and Brothels |agency=Agencia de Noticias Fides |publication-place=La Paz |url=https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/diputada-de-un-dice-que-rafael-quispe-seria-propietario-de-bares-y-lenocinios-357887-357839 |url-status=live |access-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828064521/https://www.noticiasfides.com/nacional/politica/diputada-de-un-dice-que-rafael-quispe-seria-propietario-de-bares-y-lenocinios-357887-357839 |archive-date=28 August 2020}}{{Cite news |date=2 June 2019 |title=Quispe rechaza denuncia de ser dueño de lenocinios |language=es |trans-title=Quispe Rejects Accusation That He Is the Owner of Brothels |work=El Deber |publication-place=Santa Cruz de la Sierra |url=https://eldeber.com.bo/bolivia/quispe-rechaza-denuncia-de-ser-dueno-de-lenocinios_145604 |url-status=live |url-access=registration |access-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813222529/https://eldeber.com.bo/bolivia/quispe-rechaza-denuncia-de-ser-dueno-de-lenocinios_145604 |archive-date=13 August 2022}}

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Category:1969 births

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