The presidential race in Chile will be defined in a second round between the communist candidate Jeannette Jara and the conservative José Antonio Kast. The advancement of the two candidates comes after the release of preliminary results from the Electoral Service, which showed 40% of the ballots counted at around 8pm this Sunday.
Still with less than half of the votes counted, Jara had 26.45% of the votes, while Kast had 24.46%. Franco Parisi, identified as a populist, occupied third place with 18.62%. The sum of the different right-wing candidacies guarantees a majority performance in this initial stage, which tends to influence the final round of the election.
In voting for Congress, the count should be slower, as the election involves five lists of government and opposition parties, as well as other parties and dozens of independents without support from political groups.
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A communist and a conservative
Jeannette Jara is a leader with a long history on the Chilean left. The candidate’s entry into the public debate gained strength when she led the pension reform during her time at the Ministry of Labor in the Gabriel Boric government. It seeks to combine proposals for greater border control with measures focused on public health, income subsidies and changes to bank secrecy rules.
Kast, in turn, reaches the second round as a representative of a broader right-wing political field, after consolidating support throughout the year. He advocates tax cuts for companies, economic deregulation and stricter measures against crime and irregular migration. The candidate is pressured by doubts about the viability of some proposals, such as reducing billions in public spending in a short period without affecting social programs.
Union of the right
With the release of the first results, Evelyn Matthei acknowledged defeat and declared support for Kast. “We are going to José Antonio Kast’s command to congratulate him”, stated the candidate. Research indicated that despite Jara’s favoritism in the first round, her name lost in all second round scenarios.
The definition between Jara and Kast will take place in a context of economic slowdown and intense debate on public security and migration, themes that dominated the campaign. According to data cited by Bloomberg, the Chilean financial market has advanced in recent weeks, amid expectations of management more aligned with growth. The country projects GDP expansion of 2.5% this year and next, a pace below the levels observed in previous decades.
The second round will decide who will assume the Chilean presidency from March 2026, replacing Gabriel Boric.
