The ultraconservative lawyer is in pole position going into the second round election, after running a campaign with a distinctly Trumpian feel
The ultraconservative lawyer, José Antonio Kast, is in pole position to become Chile’s next leader after advancing to the second round of the South American country’s presidential election where he will face the Communist party candidate Jeannette Jara.
With more than 70% of votes counted, Kast had secured about 24% of the vote in Sunday’s first round vote, having campaigned on hard-line promises to crack down on crime and immigration, while making a Donald Trump-style pledge to “put Chileans first”.
Jara won slightly more support, with about 26% of votes going to the former labor minister for Chile’s outgoing centre-left president, Gabriel Boric. But other right-wing candidates took almost 30% of votes meaning Kast is now the clear favourite to win the run-off on 14 December.
Shortly after the result became clear on Sunday night, the radical libertarian Johannes Kaiser, another right-wing candidate who took about 14% of votes, announced he would endorse his far-right rival, “because the alternative is Mrs Jara” and Chile’s “lefty impoverishers”.
