Mónica Eva Copa Murga (born January 3, 1987, in El Alto, La Paz, Bolivia) is the mayor of the city of El Alto, Bolivia.

A student of social work at UPEA and Bolivian politician, she was the president of the Chamber of Senators of Bolivia between November 14, 2019, and November 3, 2020. After the resignation of Adriana Salvatierra and other public servants of the government of Evo Morales, and the consequent ascension of Jeanine Áñez as president of Bolivia during the Bolivian political crisis of 2019, Eva Copa became President of the Senate, thus beginning her stage of greater political notoriety, which culminated in her election as the youngest mayor of a city in Bolivia.

In 2022, Eva Copa was included by Time magazine in its Time100 Next list, recognized as an emerging leader in the world.  In the same year, she was also named one of the 100 most influential women in the world by the BBC.

Eva Copa was born on January 3, 1987, in the city of El Alto, Bolivia. She is the penultimate of 7 children of a couple of artisans, coming from the municipality of Pucarani, located in the Province of Los Andes, of the Department of La Paz. Eva Copa's family emigrated from the countryside to the city of La Paz during the 1980’s. But later, they moved to the city of El Alto.

Eva Copa wanted to study at the Universidad Maior de San Andrés (UMSA), but because of her family's scarce economic resources, she could not. So, she decided to study at the Public University of El Alto (UPEA), where she graduated in 2011 with a degree in social work.

During her time at university, Eva Copa stood out for being a university leader. She began as a delegate of her course, then as a leader of the student center, to finish as general secretary of the Local University Federation (FUL) of the city of El Alto. She was also a “political activist for the defense of the rights of youth and alteña women” and an activist of socialization platforms and awareness of women’s rights and guarantees.

Eva Copa entered the country's political life very early: when she was still 27 years old, she was a candidate for the position of senator for the Department of La Paz, representing the Movimiento al Socialismo party, during the national elections of October 2014. She was sworn in as a senator on January 18, 2015, at the age of 28.

Due to the social conflicts aroused during the months of October and November of 2019 in Bolivia, several senior authorities of the Movimiento al Socialismo resigned from their respective positions. Among them were Bolivian President Evo Morales, Bolivian Vice President Álvaro García Linera, Chamber of Senators President Adriana Salvatierra Arriaza, and Chamber of Deputies President Víctor Borda Belzú. Due to these vacancies in power, Eva Copa assumed the presidency of the Chamber of Senators of Bolivia on November 14, 2019; where she remained until November 3, 2020.

Former Senate President Eva Copa has been nominated as a possible candidate for mayor of the City of El Alto by the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) party since the end of the 2020 administration. The sudden appointment of former mayor Zacarias Maquera to the vacancy made Eva Copa accept the candidacy by the grouping “Jallalla”, separating from her previous party.

Eva Copa won the elections to the Prefecture of El Alto with 67% of the valid votes, placing herself next to Santos Quispe of the same grouping, in the political spectrum opposed to the officialdom of MAS.

Her impact goes beyond her political career. Eve’s Aymara heritage has allowed her to become the voice of indigenous populations, historically marginalized in Bolivia. As a political activist, she works tirelessly to ensure that the voices of these communities are heard in the political arena and that their issues are addressed.

Sources: https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%B3nica_Eva_Copa

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