Chile has chosen right-wing chief José Antonio Kast as its subsequent president following an election marketing campaign closely centered on public safety, immigration, and rising crime. Kast secured a decisive victory, successful over 58% of the vote in his third bid for the presidency.
His win represents Chile’s most vital political shift to the correct because the finish of the navy dictatorship in 1990. Kast has drawn consideration for his favorable remarks about former dictator Augusto Pinochet. Within the runoff, he defeated Jeannette Jara, the candidate of the ruling left-wing coalition and a member of the Communist Social gathering.
Who Is José Antonio Kast?
José Antonio Kast, 59, heads Chile’s Republican Social gathering and eventually captured the presidency after two earlier unsuccessful makes an attempt. In line with reviews by The New York Occasions, he’s a father of 9 whose worldview is formed by conservative Roman Catholic values and neoliberal financial ideas.
Over the course of his lengthy political profession, Kast has constantly taken hardline right-wing positions. He strongly opposes unlawful immigration, abortion even in instances of rape, and lots of environmental safety measures. Amongst his proposals are the development of border limitations, the usage of the navy in areas with excessive crime charges, and the deportation of undocumented migrants.
Kast’s household background has additionally drawn scrutiny. His brother served as a minister throughout Pinochet’s rule, whereas his father was reportedly a member of the Nazi Social gathering. Pinochet, a former military basic, got here to energy after a US-backed coup in 1973 and ruled Chile for 17 years, a interval marked by widespread human rights violations, enforced disappearances, and aggressive free-market reforms.
Through the marketing campaign, Kast repeatedly warned that Chile was sliding into dysfunction and insecurity. He promised to reestablish management, tighten immigration enforcement, and implement vital cuts in authorities spending.
An open admirer of former US president Donald Trump, Kast is predicted to align intently with him ideologically. His coverage agenda mirrors a number of Trump-era concepts, together with plans for border partitions alongside Chile’s frontiers with Peru and Bolivia, the development of high-security prisons, and large-scale deportations of undocumented migrants, a lot of whom have arrived from Venezuela.
Though Chile stays one in every of South America’s most steady and safe nations, rising immigration and the rise of organized crime lately have unsettled many voters. Kast ceaselessly linked these considerations throughout his marketing campaign, a message that resonated strongly with a big phase of voters.