He has been called the “Bolivian Bolsonaro” for his anti-Indigenous, anti-socialist politics.
Camacho began his political career as vice-president of the Santa Cruz Youth Union (Unión Juvenil Cruceñista - UJC), the youth paramilitary wing of the Santa Cruz Civic Committee he would also later lead as president.
In 2019, Camacho helped lead anti-MAS violence in Santa Cruz and was one of the key figures leading to the government’s overthrow. Immediately after the coup, Camacho famously entered the presidential palace declaring with anti-Indigenous fervor that the “The Bible has re-entered the palace. Pachamama will never return.” During the elections in 2020, Camacho ran for president as the Creemos party’s candidate, representing the interests of Bolivia’s far-right.
In 2021, Camacho won the governorship of the department of Santa Cruz. Less than one year later, acting as governor in collaboration with UJC and Santa Cruz Civic Committee, Camacho supported and instigated separatist violence against pro-MAS social movements combined with a bosses’ lockout of workers. After more than a month, at least 9 people had died in Santa Cruz, a peasant movement’s offices were burned in the attempted murder of dozens more, and large businesses locked out their workers. Soon after, Governor Camacho was arrested and charged with working to undermine the constitution as well as inciting violence, terrorism, and racist discrimination in the events of 2022 as well as conspiring in the coup of 2019. He remains in jail today.
