This is how Evo Morales returns to Bolivia after exile 2:03
(CNN) -
Former Bolivian President Evo Morales returned to the country this Monday after spending almost a year in exile in Argentina.
Morales, who ruled Bolivia for nearly 14 years, fled on November 11, 2019, amid accusations of electoral fraud.
He denied the allegations and declared himself the winner of the October 2019 vote, but was eventually forced to resign before leaving the country.
After a brief stay in Mexico, Morales had been living in Buenos Aires since December 2019.
He decided to return to Bolivia after his fellow socialist Luis Arce won the Bolivian presidential elections in October.
Arce was sworn in as Bolivia's new president on Sunday.
Bolivia: Luis Arce took office as president 3:26
Arce, whom Morales had chosen as his successor, has previously served as the country's finance minister.
Evo Morales: 'Now we are back and we are millions'
"When I left, I said: 'We will return and we will be millions.'
Now we are back and there are millions of us, ”Morales said after crossing the bridge that connects Bolivia and Argentina in the Bolivian town of Villazón, accompanied by Argentine President Alberto Fernández.
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Bolivia's interim government, which took power after Morales left the country, accused the former president of alleged sedition and terrorism, but the charges were dropped in October 2020.
Judge in Bolivia annuls arrest warrant against Evo Morales
Morales has previously announced his intention to return to his native Chapare region in Central Bolivia;
he plans to arrive there on Wednesday, exactly 365 days after his departure from the country.
Morales, who was the country's first indigenous president, led Bolivia for almost 14 years.
He was credited with reducing poverty and overseeing rapid economic growth, but his popularity suffered amid accusations of electoral manipulation.
Bolivia has been very affected by the coronavirus.
The economy is also in trouble.
Unemployment has skyrocketed since the pandemic began and the International Monetary Fund forecasts a nearly 8% drop in GDP this year.
CNN's Stefano Pozzebon reported from Bogotá and Mitchell McCluskey reported from Atlanta. Ivana Kottasová wrote in London.
Evo Morales
