In 1994, the entire territory of Bolivia was merged into municipalities, where previously only urban areas were organized as municipalities. As an effect of decentralization through the 1994 Law of Popular Participation the number of municipalities in Bolivia has risen from an initial twenty-four (in 1994) to 327 (in 2005), to 337 (at the time of the 2010 elections),Jorge Castel, "10 nuevos municipios elegirán a sus autoridades en los comicios ," La Razón, 29 Marzo 2010.www.bolivia.com to 339 (). Of the 327 municipalities existing after 2005, 187 are inhabited by a mainly indigenous population; 184 of these are located in the five Andean departments, with the remaining three in Santa Cruz department.According to a definition where a majority identify with an indigenous people and speak an indigenous language, with a two-thirds majority meeting looser criteria. New municipalities must have at least 10,000 residents, or 5,000 in the case of border areas.
