By Satyaki Chakraborty
The Left coalition candidate and the Communist Party leader Jeannette Jara took the leading position in Presidential elections in Chile held on Sunday, November 16 by getting 26 per cent of the votes as against his rival far right candidate Jose Antonio Kast who got 24 per cent. Since no candidate got 50 per cent of the votes, the Chileans will vote for a run off on December 14 this year to choose the President from Jara and Kast.
An analysis of the election results reveals that though the Left coalition candidate Jara won in the first round, her rival in the runoff Kast was down by only two percent while the other two prominent right wing candidates in the first round Johannes Kaiser got 14 per cent and Evelyn Matthel got 13 per cent. Already, Matthel has announced that he is supporting Kast in the runoff and has asked his supporters to vote accordingly. Kaiser has also said that Jara has to be defeated in the December 14 run off.
In Chile, voting is now compulsory. The Sunday elections show the total votes of the three right candidates at a total of 51 per cent. As against this, the Left candidate Jara has not much prospect of significant addition of votes as all left wing groups are united under the present Left wing coalition led by the President Gabriel Boric. Even if Jara get a few more per cent, that is not sufficient to take on the far right candidate Antonio Kast if there is a right consolidation.
The only way the Left candidate can win in the runoff is by drawing huge votes from the right camp through campaigning on the popular issues which are equally important for the underprivileged sections of the right camp. The Communist leader, a former labour minister of the Boric government is expected to use her personal charisma and Zohran Mamdani’s victory in New York mayoral polls to ensure the miracle.
Jose Antonio Kast, 59, is making his third run for Chile’s presidency, having lost to Boric in 2021, and has built his campaign around two key promises: combating crime and immigration.
One of Kast’s Trumpian plans – called Escudo Fronterizo (Border Shield) – foresees the construction of miles of ditches, barriers and walls along Chile’s northern border to keep migrants out. More than half a million Venezuelans have come to Chile in recent years as a result of their country’s economic collapse. These Venezuelans are anti-communists in general but they are apprehensive of Kast victory since Kast is committed to drive them out. Despite economic meltdown in recent months, Chile is still having most stable economy in Latin American region with growth in industry.
Kast’s emergence as the main rival of Jara and the possibility of his win in the run off have been welcomed in Washington. Kast is a supporter of Trump and he is fashioning his economic programme on the lines of Maga like Make Chile Great Again by driving out the Left from power. The US administration is now focusing on regime change in Latin American pro-Left governments. That way, Washington will do everything to see that Jeannette Jara is defeated in December 14 run off and Antonio Kast is elected. US secretary of state Marco Rubio is reported to be in touch with all three right wing leaders to ensure that they remain united to organize voting for Cast in December 14 run off.
Trump administration has reasons to be happy at the recent developments in the Latin American nations which went to the polls in 2025. Ecuador elected a right President. The neighbouring Bolivia elected a centre-right president after 20 years of socialist rule. Rightwing candidates look well placed to win presidential elections in Colombia and Peru next year, while the leftwing veteran Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva faces a tough battle to retain Presidency in 2026 polls.
Chile’s GDP is expected to grow 2.5 percent this year. However, a slowdown in global growth, especially in relation to downshifts in global trade, has depressed growth in Chile. When the mining sector is removed from economic projections, Chile’s economic growth this year is virtually zero. In the first two years of Boric regime, the reforms took place along with firm measures to deal with rising prices. But in the last one year, the economic situation has deteriorated. The popularity of President Boric has dipped to 40 per cent. This has come as a big issue in Jara’s campaign. She is trying her best to deal with the issue through her own personal record as a labour minister.
Chilean Communist Party, which is the leading constituent of the Gabriel Boric led coalition carries a glorious tradition of the fight against the fascist regime of Pinochet. After fighting the fascist regime for decades, the Chilean communists took a lead role in forming a coalition of the left and socialist forces to get into power. This year in April, a young Communist Party Deputy Karol Cariola was elected as the new President of the 155 member chamber of deputies after winning by 76 to 75 votes in a gruelling fight between the combined Left and the Right. The right wing parties have a majority in the chamber with 78 members as against 76 of the left wing coalition headed by the Marxist president Gabriel Boric, but in the final voting, the Left nominee won by just one vote.
The Communist Party of Chile is assessing the ground level political reality in the light of the results, Four weeks are left for the run off on December 14. The party along with the other left partners of the coalition has planned for a massive campaign to draw the workers, peasants, women and youth who supported the Right parties in the first round. The task is tough as the national media and the big corporates are supporting the far right candidate. But both the young Marxist President Gabriel Boric and the Chilean communists are determined to do utmost to retain Presidency. In polarized Chile, the outcome of December 14 battle is sure to have impact on the coming elections in other Latin American countries. (IPA Service)
