Far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast became Chile’s 38th president on Sunday, ending the term of a center-left government. According to Al Jazeera, preliminary results on Sunday indicated that Kast had defeated former Labor Minister Jeannette Jara. Jára and her Unity for Chile coalition admitted this shortly after the polls closed.
Who is Jose Antonio Kast?
Jose Antonio Kast (59) leads the Chilean Republican Party and secured the presidency on the third attempt.
According to the New York Times, Kast is a father of nine with ideological roots in conservative Roman Catholicism and economic neoliberalism.
He campaigned on a tough-on-crime platform that had echoes of US President Donald Trump’s policy approach, promising to deport undocumented migrants and build a barrier along Chile’s vast northern border, the NYT added.
In the 2021 election, he lost to outgoing President Gabriel Boric by almost 10 points. Boric, who became Chile’s youngest president, saw his popularity drop to around 30 percent at the end of his term and was ineligible to run for a second term, according to Al Jazeera.
Voter frustration with rising crime, immigration and a slowing economy contributed to Kast’s success.
During his campaign, Kast promised to address these problems with tough measures, including mass deportations, tougher sentences and the isolation of cartel leaders in maximum security facilities.
His security platform, known as the “Implacable Plan,” emphasizes cracking down on criminals while protecting ordinary citizens.
The caste has also taken conservative stances on social and health issues, notably opposing abortion and rape cases, Al Jazeera reported.
His views have drawn criticism, particularly given his past praise for former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, who ruled from 1973 to 1990 after a military coup.
Kast, whose earlier political career was defined by a focus on conservative Catholic values such as opposition to abortion, has largely avoided mentioning these contentious issues during this year’s presidential bid, his third.
“If he was alive, he would have voted for me,” Kast was quoted as saying by Al Jazeera.
The candidate’s family background was also checked, with his father Michael Martin Kast being a former member of the Nazi Party who emigrated to Chile in 1950.
An Al Jazeera correspondent reporting from the capital noted that Kasto’s victory represented a historic moment for Chile’s far right, the first conservative government since the return to democracy in 1990.
While Kast moderated his platform during the campaign to broaden voter appeal, his association with Pinochet’s legacy raises questions about the extent of his conservative politics, Al Jazeera reported.
