Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Far-right candidate José Antonio Kast secured a spot in Chile's presidential runoff Dec. 14 with about 23.9% of the vote after a high-turnout election Sunday that reshaped the country's political landscape.
Although leftist candidate Jeannette Jara led the first round with about 26.8% of the vote, Kast emerged as the contender with the strongest path to the presidency after receiving the backing of the two other right-wing candidates in the race. Together they would total 51% of the vote.
After polls closed, results confirmed Jara's advance to the runoff with the largest share of votes nationwide. Still, the votes won by the Communist Party member barely surpassed President Gabriel Boric's first-round result in 2021 (25.83%) and fell well short of the threshold above 30% that the current government needed for her to remain competitive in the second round.
Kast capitalized on dissatisfaction with the outgoing administration and concerns over public safety. His message of law and order, stricter immigration policies and a smaller state positioned him as the right's leading figure in an election where the political center once again appeared weakened.
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