Far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast wins Chilean presidential election

SANTIGO(Chile): Far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast has emerged victorious in Chile’s presidential runoff, becoming the country’s 38th president and ending the tenure of the centre-left government, Al Jazeera reported.

According to Al Jazeera, preliminary results on Sunday showed Kast defeating the former Labour Minister Jeannette Jara, a Communist Party politician representing the governing centre-left coalition.

Jara and her coalition, Unity for Chile, conceded shortly after polls closed.

Following her defeat, Jara took to X, hailing the democratic mandate of the country, adding that her supporters would continue working for a better future for the country.

“Democracy spoke loud and clear. I just communicated with the President-elect, Jose Antonio Kast, to wish him success for the good of Chile. To those who supported us and were rallied by our candidacy, rest assured that we will continue working to advance a better life in our homeland. Together and standing tall, as we have always done,” she stated.

Kast’s victory marks another win for the far right in Latin America, where right-wing leaders, once seen as political outsiders, have recently gained power in countries such as Argentina and Ecuador, Al Jazeera reported.

At 59, Kast 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 nearly 10 points. Boric, who became Chile’s youngest president, saw his

popularity drop to around 30 per cent by the end of his term and was ineligible to run for a second term, as reported by Al Jazeera.

Voter frustration over rising crime, immigration, and a slowing economy contributed to Kast’s success.

During his campaign, Kast promised to tackle these issues with strict measures, including mass deportations, harsher sentencing, and isolating cartel leaders in maximum-security facilities. His security platform, known as the “Implacable Plan”, emphasises 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, Al Jazeera reported.

His views have drawn criticism, especially given his past praise for Chile’s former dictator, Augusto Pinochet, who ruled from 1973 to 1990 following a military coup.

“If he were alive, he would vote for me,” Kast said, as quoted by Al Jazeera.

The candidate’s family background has also been scrutinised, with his father, Michael Martin Kast, being a former Nazi Party member who emigrated to Chile in 1950.

An Al Jazeera correspondent reporting from the capital 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.

While Kast 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, Al Jazeera reported. (ANI)