Cuba's President Raul Castro, left, and his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales arrive to the National Assembly for the inauguration of Venezuela's President-elect Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, April 19, 2013. The opposition boycotted the swearing-in ceremony, hoping that the ruling party's last-minute decision to allow an audit of nearly half the vote could change the result in a the bitterly disputed presidential election. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano) (AP2013)
Bolivia's leftist President Evo Morales, who is friends with Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Cuba's Raul Castro, will be allowed to seek a third term in elections set for December 2014, the country's constitutional court ruled.
Chief Judge Ruddy Flores told a press conference that the court's decision came in response to a question from Congress.
The 2009 constitution limits the president to two consecutive terms, but Morales has always claimed that his 2006-2010 administration should not count toward that limit since it took place before the refounding of his country and did not complete the legal five-year period.
The leftist president has yet to declare himself a candidate in the 2014 election. If he were to seek and win a third term, Morales would govern Bolivia until 2020, becoming the Andean nation's longest-serving head of state.
Morales, who is Bolivia's first indigenous president first won election in December 2005 — before the new constitution was enacted. He then was re-elected in a landslide in 2009.
- President Evo Morales Headlines Anti-Capitalist World Social Forum kick off in Senegal
- Arrest of Top Bolivian Drug Cop Casts Doubts on Evo Morales’ Drug Efforts
- Critics Call Bolivia’s Evo Morales an Enviornmental Hypocrite
- Bolivia Threatens To Pull Out of International Human Rights Organization
- Detained US Man Granted House Arrest in Bolivia
- Abused Lions From Bolivia Find New Home in Colorado
- Best Pix Of The Week
- Bolivia’s Quinoa Boom
Opposition politicians say Monday's ruling is evidence that Bolivia's courts are under Morales' sway.
"The constitution is very clear in that there can only be one re-election. If Evo Morales wants a second re-election he should have to change the constitution again," said Samuel Doria Medina, leader of the center-right National Unity party.
The Associated Press and Efe contributed to this report.
Follow us on twitter.com/foxnewslatino
Like us at facebook.com/foxnewslatino
Antisemitism Exposed
Fox News' Antisemitism Exposed" newsletter brings you stories on the rising anti-Jewish prejudice across the U.S. and the world."
By entering your email and clicking the Subscribe button, you agree to the Fox News Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, and agree to receive content and promotional communications from Fox News. You understand that you can opt-out at any time.