Chile Heads to Polarized Runoff — Kast Emerges as Favorite After Strong Right-Wing Showing

Chile heads to polarized runoff after high-turnout vote

Far-right candidate José Antonio Kast secured a place in Chile's presidential runoff on Dec. 14 after winning roughly 23.9% of the vote in a high-turnout first round that reshaped the country's political map. Leftist Jeannette Jara advanced as well with about 26.8%, but Kast consolidated the right by drawing on support from the other major right-wing contenders, whose combined totals would amount to roughly 51%.

Why Kast is seen as the frontrunner

Kast capitalized on public dissatisfaction with the outgoing administration and widespread concerns about public safety. His campaign emphasized law-and-order themes, tougher immigration controls and smaller state intervention — messages that resonated with voters alarmed by crime and insecurity and helped him become the leading figure on the right amid a weakened political centre.

The surprise and the swing voters

Economist Franco Parisi was the surprise of the night, finishing third with about 19.7% of the vote. Parisi declined to endorse either finalist after the count, urging both candidates to "earn the votes," according to Chilean outlet Emol. His supporters are widely viewed as a decisive bloc for the runoff.

"This vote signals the end of a six-year political cycle that began with the 2019 social uprising," said sociologist and political scientist Alfredo Joignant, speaking to La Tercera. He described a turbulent period marked by protests, the pandemic, two failed constitutional replacement attempts and the gradual weakening of the governing coalition.

Parliamentary results and implications

Voters also elected the entire lower house and half the Senate on the same day. Those parliamentary results produced a legislature tilted to the right: the Senate is nearly evenly split between the governing coalition and the opposition, while right-wing and far-right parties will be dominant in the Chamber of Deputies, according to digital outlet The Clinic.

In practice, any incoming administration will need to negotiate reforms on a case-by-case basis. A Kast presidency would likely find a more aligned lower house for many proposals but would still lack an automatic mandate for constitutional changes that require high quorums. A Jara presidency would face a hostile legislature capable of blocking progressive and social reforms.

Historic turnout under new rules

These were the first presidential and parliamentary elections held under mandatory voting and automatic voter registration. Chile's Electoral Service reported that 85.4% of the country's 15.7 million eligible voters cast ballots — the highest turnout in Chilean history.

Jara and Kast now head into a runoff on Dec. 14 that is likely to further polarize Chile's political landscape as each side seeks to win over Parisi's voters and the broader center. The race will test whether appeals to order and security or to progressive social agendas can prevail in a sharply divided electorate.