“Chi-Chi-Chi / Le-Le-Le / Viva o Chile / Viva o Chile”, sang a group of supporters to the delegation entering, this Monday (15), at the Palace of La Moneda.
The famous chant in the stadiums to boost the morale of the national team was this time directed against a single man: José Antonio Kast, the former ultra-right vice-president elected Sunday (15) president of Chile.
The leader of the Republican Party blocked traffic in central Santiago while meeting for more than an hour with outgoing President Gabriel Boric.
The path from Kast’s car to the executive headquarters door is longer than it seems. This meeting seemed impossible, because the two politicians fought a difficult election campaign four years ago – when the ultraconservatives lost the elections for the left leadership with a meteoric trajectory.
This time, they found themselves in a very different situation. Kast, who obtained almost 60% of the votes on Sunday, handily beating the head of government Jeannette Jara, sees a Boric with low popularity.
Boric’s 2021 voter, truck driver Ricardo Cortez Castro, 54, was disappointed in the former student leader. On Sunday, he voted for Kast. He says he hopes that the ultra-right will offer him a better country than the one he received. “Kast represents orderly change and we need to change; the Boric government was very good at creating expectations, but bad at delivering results,” he says, admitting to not appreciating Kast’s support for dictator Augusto Pinochet in the past.
Next to the statue of former President Salvador Allende, who suffered the coup that resulted in the Pinochet dictatorship (1973-1990), the Antofagasta driver says he believes in the moderation of Kast’s speech in this year’s elections and that Chile’s institutions are strong enough that the president-elect must move to the center and govern in alliance with the traditional right.
“It’s like Kast said in his victory speech on Sunday, people want to live in peace. I moved to Santiago after my son was stolen. It really shook us up and it’s something that hasn’t happened in Chile for a few years.”
Castro’s concern is not isolated. It’s hard to find a Chilean willing to talk about the elections without hearing about the increase in crime and how things have gotten worse in the country with the irregular entry of immigrants. Everyone seems to have a personal story or know someone who has been the victim of a crime.
It’s a feeling similar to that of a visit to Bolivia before Rodrigo Paz’s victory in October, when the lack of fuel and rising prices dominated conversations.
In Chile, Kast was able to interpret this concern about crime and proposed a combination of fierce fight against criminal groups and rigor towards undocumented immigrants.
As the two former rivals spoke at the palace, one man was booed by Kast’s supporters. “Supporter of a dictator,” he shouts towards the government headquarters, until he is pushed back by right-wing activists, amid boos and shouts of “go away, communist”.
“We don’t want to live in fear. I don’t even think the government is as bad as some say. Boric is my son’s age, he is an educated man who knew how to dialogue with other political forces, but Chilean democracy is a work in progress, a president cannot do everything,” says retired professor Edgar Villanil, 68.
Villanil says he voted for Franco Parisi in the first round and for Kast in the second, but worries about the conservatism the president-elect has shown on issues such as marriage equality and abortion.
After approaching the fence where his supporters were and smiling for photos, Kast stressed to the press that his government will not be that of a single person or a single party, but rather a broader project, aimed at reaching agreement on fundamental issues.
The politician who managed to become president after three attempts stressed the importance of a government of national unity.
Nearby, an undocumented immigrant was trying to make a living selling corn buns.
“I just hope he doesn’t deport everyone. Most of us are honest, not involved in crimes and just want to have a better life,” says Venezuelan AC, 33. He says he feels cold treatment from customers when they notice his accent and that he plans to leave the country next year, perhaps for Brazil. “I really love being here, but I love myself more. I won’t stay if I don’t feel welcome.”
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