Paul Antonopoulos
January 4, 2026
While Brussels celebrates past successes, the removal of the veto, the erosion of the Single Market, and accelerated enlargement threaten to turn the European project into something very different from what Spain and Portugal signed up to in 1986.
On Sunday, November 16, Chile held the first round of decisive presidential and parliamentary elections. In addition to electing President Gabriel Boric’s successor, the country completely renewed the Chamber of Deputies (155 deputies) and part of the Senate (23 senators) in a context marked by institutional erosion, a security crisis, and deep citizen disenchantment with the ruling Left. In terms of seats, the Cambio por Chile (Change for Chile) pact (Republican Party and National Libertarian Party—new right) rose to 42 seats, up from 15 in 2021. Chile Grande y Unido (Great and United Chile) (Chile Vamos, Democrats, and Amarillos—traditional Right) fell from 53 to 34 seats. The People’s Party (center) rose from 6 to 14. For its part, Unity for Chile, the Left, fell from 72 to 61. It is worth mentioning that there were reports of possible irregularities and discrepancies at some polling stations, with a potential impact on the parliamentary results. If true, these anomalies would have neutralized Congress and prevented a right-wing majority capable of pushing through key reforms. Even so, the process was not annulled.
In the presidential election, three of the eight candidates were considered favorites: communist Jeannette Jara; José Antonio Kast, leader of the Republican Party and standard-bearer of the conservative Right; and Evelyn Matthei, of the Independent Democratic Union, as a figure of the traditional center-right. There were no surprises with the first two: Jara was the most voted, obtaining 26.8% of the votes, and José Antonio Kast was second, with 23.9%, but third place went to Franco Parisi, from the People’s Party, with 19.7%. Johannes Kaiser, from the National Libertarian Party, an exponent of a new right wing that has consolidated its own political space and pushed the debate toward tougher positions on security, the economy, and sovereignty, received 13.9% of the vote.
Beyond the names, the relevant political data was the sum of right-wing forces, which exceeded 53% of the electorate, confirming an ideological shift driven by the erosion of Boric’s government, whose approval rating stood at around one-third of the population.
This shift foreshadowed José Antonio Kast’s victory in the second round. Kast won a resounding victory with 58.16% of the vote, compared to 41.84% for Jeannette Jara. Despite the clear victory for the Right, it is significant that nearly 40% of the electorate supported a radical left-wing ideological proposal. As Chilean journalist Juan Lehuedé points out, this is a direct consequence of the absence of the Right in the cultural battle, which has allowed “the Chilean left, despite its resounding failure under Allende’s government and the repeated failures and misery caused by communism around the world during the 20th and 21st centuries, to maintain considerable support today. Chileans should learn the lesson of what it means to neglect and fail to finance the cultural war.”
The cultural battle is not the only pressing task for the new Chilean president; Boric’s government leaves behind a very negative balance sheet. Chile faces a fiscal debt of close to 60% of GDP, unprecedented levels of insecurity, and a growing fragility of the rule of law. The perception of insecurity reached 90.6%, according to the 2023 National Citizen Security Survey, while organized crime and drug trafficking have expanded territorially. Kast also inherits enormous public spending, with a state apparatus that has grown by more than 100,000 new civil servants, a housing deficit of nearly 850,000 homes, and an explosive increase in irregular migration: from 109,846 people in 2021 to 336,984 in 2025, which led to a collapse in basic services and an increase in crime.
Nor should it be forgotten that Boric came to power following the violent demonstrations of 2019, a ‘social uprising’ marked by burned subway stations, mass looting, and the destruction of commerce—actions frequently defended as “civil disobedience” or a “social awakening.” According to Johannes Kaiser, it was in fact “a hybrid war to weaken the state and legitimize the actions of violent groups.” The demonstrations, which were by no means spontaneous, were organized by internal and external criminal groups to promote radical ideological agendas and bring down Piñera’s previous center-right government. Restoring the state’s capacity to deal with these radical groups is another task that the new government has urgently addressed.
With José Antonio Kast’s victory in the presidential runoff, Chile is embarking on a far-reaching political shift. After years marked by the expansion of the state, the weakening of public order, and institutional fragmentation, the new government intends to implement an agenda of moral conservatism, defense of private property, restoration of state authority, and national sovereignty. In his first speech as president-elect, Kast made clear his intention to return Chile to the Chilean people:
I ask God for the wisdom, temperance, and strength to always rise to this challenge … It was not one person who won here, nor was it one party … Chile won. The Chile that works, that rises early, that raises its family and children with great sacrifice, the Chile that fulfills its obligations with effort, that Chile that cares for the elderly and just wants to live in peace.
To do so, the first step is to restore security. Kast has defined the current situation as a national emergency, committing himself to unambiguously confronting organized crime, drug trafficking, and violence. To this end, he has announced measures to strengthen police intelligence, promote the intensive use of technology, and deploy the Armed Forces in support of internal security. “There is no dialogue with terrorism; it is fought with the rule of law,” said the new president, who intends to recover every part of the national territory where the state has been displaced. Likewise, the “Chile without Vandals” plan contemplates the creation of a Single Registry of Violent Offenders, intended to identify those who destroy public property, with effective sanctions and restrictions on access to state benefits.
Another pillar of the new government will be a tougher immigration policy. Kast has announced a zero-tolerance strategy toward illegal immigration, which includes classifying irregular entry as a crime, speeding up deportations, and eliminating social assistance for those with illegal immigration status. The proposal seeks to reverse the inherited border chaos and alleviate pressure on public services.
On the economic front, Kast proposes a fiscal adjustment of approximately $6 billion during the first 18 months, through a comprehensive audit of the state apparatus, “desk by desk.” The goal is to cut misallocated spending, reduce bureaucracy, and restore efficiency to the state. The program aims to resume sustained growth of 4% per year, boosting private investment and ensuring legal stability. Kast has reiterated that “without growth, no social policies are possible,” distancing himself from the statist approach that has prevailed in recent years.
On social issues, the new government proposes a mixed approach combining state action with private participation. Its commitments include building 500,000 homes, declaring a health emergency to reduce waiting lists, and modernizing hospital management. In education, Kast wants to restore parents’ freedom of choice and merit as an admission criterion.
In international politics, Kast’s presidency promises a shift toward the explicit defense of national sovereignty. The new president has expressed affinity with leaders such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and has criticized what he calls “ideological globalism,” particularly in terms of progressive agendas promoted by multilateral organizations.
Domestically, the government assumes that one of its most complex challenges will be the cultural battle. Kast has been clear in his rejection of gender ideology, abortion, and the imposition of new ‘rights’ that, in his view, erode social cohesion and traditional values. He will maintain abortion only under the three current grounds and will promote policies focused on family, motherhood, and individual responsibility.
After decades of impoverishing policies, insecurity, and institutional weakening across the continent, large sectors of the population are beginning to wake up from their anesthesia and abandon their support for leftist projects. The regional change of course had its first impact in Argentina with the political phenomenon of Javier Milei, continued in Ecuador and Honduras, and has now clearly manifested itself again in Chile.
“We have had 14 governments that supported the Sao Paulo Forum, and now there is a shift in the pendulum,” says Venezuelan opposition leader Alejandro Peña Esclusa. “The inability to govern and the Sao Paulo Forum’s links to drug trafficking have favored the growth of the right wing, and this process will continue in Costa Rica, Peru, and Colombia in the coming months.” For Peña Esclusa, the change of cycle would accelerate greatly with the fall of Maduro in Venezuela, a fall that “would drag Cuba and Nicaragua down with it and offer a wealth of information linking other leftist leaders to organized crime.”
In this context, political confrontation is no longer limited to the classic dichotomy between Right and Left, but rather revolves around the defense of freedom, democracy, and the rule of law in the face of authoritarian projects linked to 21st-century socialism. “Kast’s victory contributes to the formation of an alliance of right-wing governments which, with the support of the United States, can tackle our main threat: organized crime, which is indistinguishable from the Sao Paulo Forum. It is no coincidence that Kast’s first trip was to Argentina; this victory will have many repercussions on the continent,” concludes Peña Esclusa.
Chileans have opted for change that prioritizes governance, order, and the restoration of trust in institutions. The right wing, led by José Antonio Kast, capitalized on this discontent by offering to end impunity, restore the rule of law, and guarantee the effective protection of citizens. Chile demands renewed leadership and a clear break with the inertia of the soft and opportunistic politics of recent decades, and the new political cycle raises expectations of reversing this trend. The course has been set. Starting on March 11, the most difficult test begins: governing.
