By Anjsali Sharma
WASHINGTON – According to media reports on Mondsay far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast has emerged victorious in Chile’s presidential runoff, became the country’s 38th president and ending the tenure of the centre-left government.
Media reports said preliminary results on Sunday showed Kast defeated the former Labour Minister Jeannette Jara, a Communist Party politician represents the governing centre-left coalition.
Kast, 59 years old leads Chile’s Republican Party and secured the presidency on his third attempt.
He had lost the 2021 election to outgoing President Gabriel Boric by 10 points.
Boric, who became Chile’s youngest president, saw his popularity drop to 30% by the end of his term and was ineligible to run for a second term, as reported by media.
The experts stated that voter frustration over rising crime, immigration, and a slowing economy contributed to Kast’s success.
Kast promised to tackle these issues with strict measures, including mass deportations, harsher sentencing, and isolating cartel leaders in maximum-security facilities during his campaign.
His security platform, known as the “Implacable Plan”, emphasized cracking down on criminals while protecting ordinary citizens.
Kast has also taken conservative positions on social and health issues, notably opposing abortion even in cases of rape, media reported.
His views have drawn criticism, especially given his past praise for Chile’s former dictator, Augusto Pinochet, who ruled from 1973 to 1990 after a military coup.
“If he were alive, he would vote for me,” Kast said, as quoted by media.
Kast family background has been scrutinized, his father, Michael Martin Kast was a former Nazi Party member who had immigrated to Chile in 1950.
Media noted that Kast’s victory represents a historic moment for Chile’s far right, the first conservative government since the return to democracy in 1990
He moderated his platform to broaden voter appeal during the campaign.
His alignment with Pinochet’s legacy raises questions about the extent of his conservative policies.
