santiago, chile
AP
—
Janet Jara, the communist candidate for Chile’s center-left government, and veteran far-right politician José Antonio Casto will contest the presidential race in a run-off next month, the government has announced, after neither emerged victorious in Sunday’s polarized election.
With nearly 80% of votes counted and results still trickling in, Chile’s leftist president, Gabriel Boric, has confirmed Jara and Casto as the frontrunners for the second round of elections scheduled for December 14th.
“I believe that dialogue, respect and love for Chile will outweigh any differences,” Boric said, congratulating his rivals.
Immediately after his speech, cheers erupted from campaign headquarters in Jara and Casto, on opposite sides of the capital, Santiago.
Jara received more than 26% of the valid votes cast, but far short of the 50% threshold needed to win in the first round.
“I want to send a warm hug to everyone who voted for me,” Jara said after learning the results. “This is a wonderful country.”
Kast narrowly won more than 24% of the vote, underscoring his ability to take a tough-on-crime stance in response to widespread complaints about deteriorating security and illegal immigration.
That could pave the way for a shift to the right in Chile, the world’s largest copper producer and one of the region’s most prosperous and stable countries.
This was the first presidential election since voting was compulsory and voter registration was automatic after years of abysmal turnout, with more than 15.7 million voters required to vote out of a nation of more than 18 million people.
Even if Hara, 51, a former government labor minister, comes out on top, Kast, 59, will be buoyed in the second round by the large number of votes that went to his defeated right-wing challenger.
