🔗 Share this article Far-Right Former Lawmaker J.A. Kast Elected as Chile's Incoming President. In a decisive runoff election, hardline politician José Antonio Kast has won the presidency in Chile. A Commanding Triumph With more than 99% of ballots counted, Kast won 58.17% of the ballots, beating leftist former minister Jeannette Jara, who obtained 41.83%. This signifies Kast's third bid for the presidency, having earlier been lost by the current president, Gabriel Boric, in the 2021 runoff. Platform Focused On Law and Order and Migration Noted for his strong socially conservative views and admiration for the era of dictator Augusto Pinochet, Kast's campaign was mostly centered on promises to tackle rising insecurity and significantly restrict immigration. He consistently cited foreigners, especially the approximately 330,000 undocumented individuals in Chile, for crime rates. Throughout the race, he issued an ultimatum for them to exit before the new term begins or face deportation. His proposals included U.S.-style measures such as erecting holding facilities, high walls, security fences, and increasing the army presence on the northernmost frontier. Amid a Broader Wave Numerous commentators interpret Kast's win as part of a larger right-wing wave in Latin America, similar to recent electoral outcomes in nations like Ecuador, Bolivia, and Argentina. However, other experts also frame it as a continuation of the established rotation of power between left and right administrations since Chile's establishment of democracy in 1990. Governing Lacking a Clear Majority In spite of his clear popular vote triumph, Kast will not hold an overall majority in Congress, neither in the Chamber of Deputies or the Senate, even when all conservative parties are grouped together. This legislative reality could complicate his agenda, including a promise to reduce public spending by a significant sum within a year and a half—a measure for which he has not offered specifics. "There are several aspects about how a Kast presidency will be that we don't know because he has not detailed how he will achieve them," noted a political science analyst. The analyst added, "Regarding economic policy, it is very likely we will see austerity policies typical of the right-wing. However the area with far less ambiguity is on security policy, because that has been his flagship issue throughout the race."