Conservative José Antonio Kast was elected president of Chile on Sunday (14), confirming the favoritism he maintained throughout the second round campaign. With the result, the right returns to occupy the La Moneda Palace after four years of left-wing government under the leadership of Gabriel Boric.
With 83.43% of the votes counted, Kast reached 59.8% of the vote, compared to 40.2% for the government candidate Jeannette Jara, of the Communist Party. The advantage of almost 20 percentage points led Chilean electoral authorities to consider the victory irreversible even during the counting process.
Acknowledgment of defeat and conciliatory speech
Still on Sunday (14), Jeannette Jara acknowledged defeat and contacted the winner. “Democracy has spoken loudly and clearly. I have just communicated with the president-elect José Antonio Kast to wish him success for the good of Chile,” she said. Then she added: “To those who supported us, be clear that we will continue working to advance towards a better life in our homeland.”
Kast voted in the commune of Paine, about 40 kilometers from Santiago, where he was greeted by supporters shouting “President!”. After leaving the polling station, he stated that he will seek to govern for everyone. “Whoever wins will have to be president of all Chileans,” he declared to the press.
Profile of the president-elect
A lawyer, Catholic, and father of nine, José Antonio Kast is 59 years old and ran for president for the third time. In previous campaigns, he was defeated, mainly due to his positions related to conservative social issues. In this election, he adopted a different strategy, reducing the centrality of these themes, incorporating women into the campaign, and increasing his acceptance among voters.
The founder of the Republican Party, created five years ago, Kast decided to forge his own path, considering the traditional right wing excessively moderate. One of the authors of his biography, María José Hinojosa, stated that he is a “charming man with messianic daydreams” and that he sees himself as “the savior of Chile.”
Security, immigration, and base in Congress.
Among the president-elect’s main promises are a stricter policy to combat crime and the deportation of approximately 340,000 undocumented immigrants, mostly Venezuelans. Kast, however, did not detail how he intends to implement these measures, which require significant financial resources and agreements with other countries. The new government should have a favorable Congress. The Republican Party has increased its presence in the House and Senate and may count on the support of other right-wing parties to advance its agenda after the inauguration, scheduled for March.
Crime as the central theme of the campaign
During the campaign, Kast repeatedly stated that “the country is falling apart” and portrayed Chile as a country weakened by violence and drug trafficking, a discourse that resonated with part of the electorate. “What matters, more than social benefits, are jobs and security. That people can leave their homes without fear and return at night without thinking that something will happen to them on the street corners,” said Úrsula Villalobos, a 44-year-old housewife who declared her vote for Kast.
A survey by Ipsos released in October indicated that 63% of Chileans consider crime and violence their biggest concerns, followed by low economic growth. Experts point out that the feeling of insecurity is higher than the actual figures, although violent crimes have increased in the last decade, especially kidnappings and extortion.
Political context and challenges
The government of Gabriel Boric, which came to power after the massive protests of 2019, faced difficulties in implementing structural reforms, especially the attempt to replace the Constitution inherited from the Augusto Pinochet era. According to political scientist Robert Funk of the University of Chile, the failure in this process “completely undermined his political support.”
Kast declared his support for the military regime and stated that, if Pinochet were alive, he would vote for him. In the most recent campaign, he avoided delving into this issue and reduced mentions of his opposition to abortion under any circumstances, matters considered sensitive from an electoral standpoint.
Since 2010, Chile has experienced a constant alternation between right-wing and left-wing governments. For Funk, Kast’s victory does not represent a blank check. Many people, the professor argues, voted for him “despite his support for Pinochet, not because of his support for Pinochet.”
Source: brasil247.com