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Chile votes in presidential race expected to lurch country to the right

On December 14, Chileans will vote in a runoff that Reuters says could produce the sharpest rightward shift since 1990, with nearly 15.6 million registered voters set to cast ballots.
Rising crime and migration have pushed the campaign's focus as organised crime and immigration rattled voters, forcing Jeannette Jara to adjust and boosting Jose Antonio Kast amid President Gabriel Boric's low approval.
In the first round, Jeannette Jara led with 26.85% while Jose Antonio Kast took 23.92% under new mandatory voting with automatic registration and fines; about 20% remain undecided or planning blank ballots.
Investors welcomed the first-round outcome, pushing markets higher as the Chilean peso strengthened and MSCI’s Chile equity benchmark surged last month, though Jose Antonio Kast's Republican Party lacks a congressional majority.
Kast's proposed policies include $6 billion in cuts, deporting over 300,000 immigrants, and expanded army powers, while he dodged a December 3 question on pardoning Miguel Krassnoff.

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