This Sunday, 15,770,000 Chileans were called to cast their votes in an election that promises to mark the before and after days of the country’s politics. Eight candidates are competing to reach La Moneda, in a scenario dominated by insecurity, economic crisis, migration and clear social division.
Opinion polls agree that no force will reach the 50% needed to win in the first round, which opens the door to a high-effort runoff on December 14.
In the lead is the official flag-bearer, Janet Jara, who leads the race with nearly 30%, followed by right-wing and far-right candidates. Behind this struggle for second place there is a wide range ranging from moderate options to extreme liberal discourses.
Janet Jara: The ruling party’s bet
General manager, lawyer and senior figure in Gabriel Buric’s government, Janet Jara won the left-wing primary with 60% and later added the support of the Christian Democrats.
She is 51 years old and came to power thanks to tangible achievements such as reducing the working day to 40 hours, increasing the minimum wage and progress on pension reform.
Jara promises to fight crime by lifting banking secrecy to follow the money trail, promoting $800 “vital income,” universal day care, regulated drugs, and accessible mortgage loans for young people.
Although he has been a member of the Communist Party since he was fourteen years old, his programmatic positions are closer to social democracy.
Cast: The far right seeks revenge
The Republican leader is competing for the third time and seeks to benefit from citizens’ unrest.
José Antonio Caste, the son of a former German Nazi militant, promises a “strong hand,” mass expulsions of migrants, closing illegal border crossings, surveillance drones, and a smaller state.
He was first in the 2021 elections but lost the runoff to Buric. His current challenge is to retain the conservative voter who today also looks to Johannes Kaiser, the liberal who forcibly penetrated the country.
Evelyn Matthey: The traditional right that has fallen out of favor
Economist, former senator, former minister and current mayor of Providencia, Evelyn Matthey, seems set to lead the opposition space. But the impact of Kast and Kaiser’s tough talk skewed their chances.
The program promises to create one million jobs, secure borders, and cancel previous mortgage savings for young people, in a country with a housing deficit of nearly 500,000 homes.
Johannes Kaiser: From Flow to Congress
The 42-year-old former YouTuber and current congressman embodies a new far right, with proposals that have sparked controversy inside and outside Chile: withdrawing the country from international organizations, mass expulsions, “re-concentration camps” on the border with Bolivia, and sending prisoners to the large Nayib Bukele prison in El Salvador.
Opinion polls put him in a fight for second place, an unexpected phenomenon that has reshaped the campaign.
Extensive list: Parisi, ME-O, Mayne-Nicholls and Artés
Ballots are supplemented with numbers with completely different profiles:
Franco Baresi, from the People’s Party, with anti-regime rhetoric and a strong digital presence. Marco Enriquez Ominami (ME-O), who is in his fifth nomination. Harold Mayne Nichols, a former sports leader with a moderate approach. Eduardo Artes, the most radical representative of the left.
What’s at stake?
Chile enters these elections with a citizenry that is tired, distrustful and plagued by a persistent sense of insecurity.
The outcome will not only determine the identity of the next president, but will also give a clear signal about the direction the country wants to take in the midst of a tense political cycle.
Through compulsory voting, millions of Chileans will put to the ballot boxes their diagnosis of the present and their hopes – or fears – for the future.
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