Morales has vowed to use the presidency to legalize coca growing and to become a "nightmare" for the United States. Morales, however, will likely talk like a populist, but walk like a centrist in order to maintain order in Bolivia.

Movement to Socialism (MAS) party candidate Evo Morales won Bolivia's presidential elections Dec.18, officials announced Dec. 19 with 80 percent of the votes tallied.

Morales hopes to usher in a new era for Bolivia built on socialist principles, mirroring the growing populist leanings of Latin America. Morales, however, knows he must please his peasant and indigenous base while maintaining a clever balance with the nation's elite. The question remains, however, which type of populist model Morales will choose to emulate. Will he follow in the radical socialist footsteps of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, or take the approach of economic pragmatism like centrist Brazilian President Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva. Or will Morales follow a hybrid model?

Morales' rise from poor, indigenous llama farmer to Bolivian president illustrates a regional trend of the shift of power from traditional, wealthy elites to members of left-wing, populist groups. Morales campaigned on broadening coca cultivation beyond the acreage currently permitted by the law, which helped secure support among peasant groups who rely on farming for survival. According to Morales, increasing coca cultivation provides poverty-stricken areas with more money.

The move serves a dual purpose for Morales. For starters, it will surely annoy Washington. In turn, Bolivia could stand to lose all of its U.S. aid money, of which it received $100 million in 2004 -- $90 million of which was anti-drug aid. Morales will look to Chavez to fill the breach, but losing U.S. money could prove detrimental to Bolivia's economy were Washington to impose economic sanctions or to dissuade investment. Annoying the United States, however, represents a campaign pledge and a dream for Morales. Already, he has earned populist respect from the left on both the diplomatic and economic front, making him appear to side with Chavez's politics.

Despite winning 51 percent of the vote, Morales faces opposition from powerful forces in Bolivia -- forces that control the country's purse strings. Traditional elites and investors dislike Morales and his populist stance, something which could pose problems for the MAS. On the other side of the equation, Morales knows that populist anger has ousted two Bolivian presidents since 2003, and that Bolivians do not mind rioting or creating mayhem to make a point.

In an initial move likely to assuage the traditional elite's concerns about nationalizing the country's natural gas industry -- a sector central to Bolivian politics -- Morales promised Dec. 19 not to expropriate the nation's natural gas reserves controlled by oil companies. Nationalizing the energy industry represents a central populist goal, in conflict with elite support for privatization measures. This concession makes Morales appear to be moving toward the center economically, not unlike da Silva.

While its still too early to discern which brand of populism Morales will follow, he has thus far demonstrated the cunning to appease all factions after his win. Only time will tell where he will ultimately come to rest ideologically, but he has so managed the impressive feat of annoying the United States, appeasing the socialists, and mitigating elite fears. He is thus juggling several balls at once, and only time will tell which ball, if any, he will drop first.