Major win for ultra-conservative gives Chile its most right-wing president in decades [View all]
Source: AP
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Chile’s ultra-conservative former lawmaker José Antonio Kast secured a stunning victory in the presidential election Sunday, defeating the candidate of the center-left governing coalition and setting the stage for the country’s most right-wing government in 35 years of democracy.
Kast won 58.2% of the votes as Chileans overwhelmingly embraced his pledge to crack down on increased crime, deport hundreds of thousands of immigrants without legal status and revive the sluggish economy of one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations.
His challenger, communist candidate Jeannette Jara, clinched 41.8% of the vote. She called Kast to concede the election and congratulate him on his successful campaign after his lead became irreversible. Kast’s supporters erupted into cheers in the street, shouting his name and honking horns.
“Democracy spoke loud and clear,” Jara, who served as labor minister in the center-left government of President Gabriel Boric, wrote on social media.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/chile-elections-kast-jara-president-boric-trump-e9ef32b53359f3152ee80d62c106c5f6
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