Far-right Kast wins Chile presidency in landslide
Far-right Republican Party candidate José Antonio Kast has won Chile’s presidential runoff election in a decisive victory, securing 58.17% of the vote and defeating left-wing rival Jeannette Jara, official results show.
Jara, a Communist Party member and former labor minister, received 41.83% and conceded defeat shortly after early tallies were released, News.Az reports, citing Turkish media.
“Democracy spoke loud and clear,” she said, confirming she had spoken with President-elect Kast to wish him success “for the good of Chile.”
The result marks a major comeback for Kast, who finished second in the first round of voting in November. Although Jara led the initial ballot, Kast successfully consolidated support from other right-wing candidates, whose combined vote share far exceeded that of the left.
Jara’s campaign was also weighed down by the low approval ratings of President Gabriel Boric’s government, which belongs to her governing coalition.
Kast, an ultraconservative lawyer and former lawmaker, ran on a hardline platform focused on public security. A staunch Catholic, he opposes abortion and same-sex marriage and has previously expressed admiration for former military ruler Augusto Pinochet.
Security dominated the election campaign, overtaking economic and social issues as voters’ top concern. While Chile remains among the safer countries in Latin America, a recent rise in organized crime, homicides, and kidnappings has fueled widespread anxiety.
Capitalizing on these fears, Kast pledged tough measures, including deploying the military to high-crime areas, building a wall along Chile’s northern border, and deporting migrants living in the country illegally. Chile’s immigrant population has doubled over the past decade, driven largely by arrivals from Venezuela.
The election also saw a sharp rise in turnout, as voting was compulsory for the first time in more than ten years.
Kast’s victory adds to a broader trend of far-right gains across Latin America, following similar political shifts in countries such as Argentina and Ecuador. The United States congratulated Kast on his win, saying it looked forward to working with his administration on shared priorities such as public security, migration, and trade.
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