Jeannette Jara leads first-round polls in Chile’s 2025 presidential race, but a crowded right — led by José Antonio Kast — could unite in a decisive runoff. Mandatory voting returns on 16 November, raising turnout and the stakes: all 155 Chamber seats and 23 Senate seats are also contested. Crime, immigration and a slowing economy (near 9% unemployment) are the dominant voter concerns.
Chile’s 2025 Election: Is the Country Poised for a Political Shift?
Jeannette Jara leads first-round polls in Chile’s 2025 presidential race, but a crowded right — led by José Antonio Kast — could unite in a decisive runoff. Mandatory voting returns on 16 November, raising turnout and the stakes: all 155 Chamber seats and 23 Senate seats are also contested. Crime, immigration and a slowing economy (near 9% unemployment) are the dominant voter concerns.
04:51 PM, 11/15/2025Politics
Overview
When Gabriel Boric was sworn in as Chile’s president in 2022, his victory was described by supporters as the start of a new political chapter. The young leftist rose to power amid mass protests over cost-of-living pressures and pledged to oversee a rewrite of the constitution created under General Augusto Pinochet, a charter long associated with a pro-market model.
Where things stand in 2025
Several failed attempts to replace that constitution have left Chile politically unsettled. Boric is constitutionally barred from immediate re-election, and a strengthened right-leaning opposition is campaigning on public safety, immigration and economic concerns. The first round of the presidential race takes place on 16 November 2025, with a runoff scheduled for 14 December if no candidate wins an outright majority (50%+).
Election mechanics and stakes
Mandatory voting returns for Chilean presidential elections for the first time since 2012, a change likely to boost turnout. In the 2021 first round, participation was only about 47% of eligible voters; mandatory voting in recent constitutional referendums has exceeded 80%. As of 2024 there were 15,450,377 registered voters. The November vote will also determine all 155 Chamber of Deputies seats and 23 of 50 Senate seats, shaping the next government’s ability to legislate.
Main contenders
Jeannette Jara (Unity for Chile) — The governing coalition’s nominee, Jara, 51, is a former labour minister who led the effort to shorten the workweek from 45 to 40 hours. She won her coalition primary decisively with roughly 60% and campaigns on affordability, higher minimum wages and expanded housing access. Representing the Communist Party within the broader left coalition, she emphasizes steady governance and has proposed tougher public-safety measures, including increased police training and expanded prison capacity.
José Antonio Kast (Republican Party) — Kast, 59, the leading right-wing figure, narrowly lost to Boric in 2021 and remains a prominent candidate. He runs on a hardline platform on crime and immigration, citing leaders such as El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele as an inspiration. Kast has proposed mass deportations, sharp spending cuts and incentives for private investment, and has expressed admiration for aspects of the Pinochet era, a stance that remains polarizing.
Johannes Kaiser (National Libertarian Party) — A 49-year-old former YouTuber and lawmaker, Kaiser advocates more radical pro-market reforms, withdrawal from some international pacts, expanded civilian gun access and has controversially supported measures such as the death penalty.
Other notable names include independent economist and former radio host Franco Parisi and centre-right, pro-business politician Evelyn Matthei.
Polls and the likely runoff
Polling averages from the Americas Society/Council of the Americas (AS/COA) show Jara leading at roughly 25%, with Kast near 20%. Johannes Kaiser and Franco Parisi have gained ground, polling between 10–14%, while Evelyn Matthei is polling around 11–14%. With multiple right-leaning candidates on the ballot, the conservative vote could consolidate behind a single challenger in a second round.
Key issues driving voters
Crime and immigration top voter concerns. An October survey by Activa found crime and immigration as the dominant worries, followed by unemployment and health. Although Chile’s violent-crime rates remain lower than many regional peers, recent surges in organised criminal activity, corruption and theft have alarmed citizens and small-business owners. As one Santiago nightclub owner told the Associated Press: “I had to install remote surveillance cameras [and] chain the tables, and on weekends I hired a security guard to help keep watch.”
Immigration has risen sharply in recent years — Chilean agencies reported migration grew by 46.8% between 2018 and 2024, though growth slowed to 4.5% from 2022–2024 — and has become a political flashpoint. Economic headwinds, including an unemployment rate near 9%, are feeding voter dissatisfaction and strengthening appeals from candidates promising decisive action.
What to watch
- Whether mandatory voting materially increases turnout and how that affects party performance.
- How the fragmented right consolidates (or fails to) ahead of a likely runoff.
- How candidates translate crime, immigration and economic concerns into credible policy proposals rather than rhetoric.
Chile’s 2025 election will not only choose the next president but will also shape the legislature and the country’s policy direction for years to come. A second-round contest between a unified right and the left’s nominee remains a very real possibility.