The difference in votes in the first round on November 21 was minimal, just two percentage points: the far-right José Antonio Kast won with 28% of the vote, while the leftist Gabriel Boric won 26%. In the final stretch for the second round next Sunday, both candidates, each on a political extreme, seek to get closer to the center to obtain the votes of those who have not yet made a decision.
National and foreign political analysts do not dare to predict what will happen, after none of the candidates reached the percentage of votes necessary in the first round to win and after various debates, where the focus of arguments is on delegitimizing his opponent and not trying to explain the most risky and ambitious proposals.
The outlook becomes even more complicated if one takes into account that in the first round the turnout was only 47% and according to a private poll by the pollster Cadem, carried out in the first week of December, a quarter of Chileans qualified remain undecided or do not plan to vote in the second round.
Polarization in Chile, Kast or Boric?
José Antonio Kast, 55, is the candidate of the Christian Social Front. As a lawyer, he practiced politics in the Independent Democratic Union party and later founded the Republican party.
Kast is the son of German citizens who emigrated to Chile in 1950 and a defender of the legacy of the former president and dictator Augusto Pinochet (1973 – 1990). In fact, when announcing his candidacy, under the premise of establishing “order and progress,” he said that if the leader of the Chilean military regime were alive, he would vote for him. “It is evident, Pinochet would vote for me,” he assured.
However, with the passing of the days he has softened his speech so as not to be related to Pinochet’s human rights violations. Nonetheless, Kast closely follows the ideas of Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro, but his stance in public tends to be less controversial and euphoric.
His proposals are aimed at security, the economy and migration.
It seeks to lower taxes and reduce public spending through less participation of the State at the economic level and promoting the commercial sector to generate employment.
He wants to maintain the current individual savings system in the dying Chilean pension system and proposed to postpone the retirement age to avoid a collapse of the pension system.
With these ideas he has publicly criticized his counterpart on several occasions.
“Boric and the Communist party want to pardon the vandals who destroy. They meet with terrorists and murderers. They want instability, close borders to trade, advance along the path of hatred. We do not want the route that leads us to be Venezuela and Cuba.” Kast has expressed.
Experts have raised concerns about Kast’s continued support for the 1980 Constitution, as the country undergoes a constitutional transition as a result of the 2019 demonstrations that shook the country.
We dare to raise our flag for a different future. This December 19, the Biobío dares. https://t.co/a0U0GcyMpC
– José Antonio Kast Rist 🇨🇱 (@joseantoniokast) December 14, 2021
For his part, Gabriel Boric, with just the minimum age to occupy the position, 35 years old, is on the other political coast representing the left with the I Approve Dignity coalition.
His first approach to politics was in a group of student leaders who led the protests calling for free, free and quality education that shook the country in 2011.
Historically, two political tendencies have reigned in Chile: the right and the center left. The deputy, who has been criticized for his inexperience and for the lack of a trained team to accompany him in national challenges, presents himself as the new left-wing alternative.
“I am absolutely clear that stability today implies changes, changes gradually, advancing step by step so as not to lose ground. But what we cannot do is continue the same,” said Boric.
A better Chile is one that guarantees dignity to all its inhabitants. Our goal is to increase pensions, with a new system, without AFPs that ensure a dignified old age for those who worked all their lives. pic.twitter.com/Kk5MTuGZRR
– Gabriel Boric Font (@gabrielboric) December 14, 2021
Points of clash between the proposals
Without a doubt, the highest point in the discussions has been equal marriage, recently approved and promulgated by President Sebastián Piñera, since in one of the debates between the candidates, Kast’s derogatory comments came to light towards the struggle for LGTBIQ + rights in where he has described them as a “gay dictatorship.”
Since then, some ideas – initially presented as radical – have been progressively withdrawn. For example, Kast reversed his idea of ending the Women’s Ministry, backtracked from reversing the therapeutic abortion law, and softened his proposal that sought to lower taxes on large Chilean companies.
On the other side of the table, the point that has been considered as Boric’s weak side has been his lack of proposals for the fight against insecurity and economic reforms.
Boric proposes to strengthen the State, increase fiscal spending and increase the tax burden by more or less eight points of (GDP) in a horizon of six to eight years, and has spoken very little about his actions against crime and drug trafficking if become president.
A decisive presidential election
Since the return of democracy in the Andean country, the right wing had not achieved results in the Senate as it did in these elections.
In the Chamber of Deputies, on the other hand, the representation has been varied but with a greater female participation, going from 36 to 55 women.
It is also the first time that a United Nations representative has supported one of the aspiring candidates to arrive at La Moneda.
That was the case of Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and former president of Chile on two occasions (2006 – 2010 and 2014 – 2018) who made her political position public this week.
“Elect a president who ensures that our country can truly continue on a path of progress for all, a path of greater freedom, equality, human rights that are respected, a sustainable environment and the opportunity for a new Constitution,” said Bachelet.
This Sunday, more than 15 million Chileans are summoned to vote voluntarily to choose the successor of the conservative Sebastián Piñera.
With EFE, Reuters, AP and local media
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