The ultra-conservative former congressman José Antonio Kast has been elected as Chile’s next president, securing a decisive victory in Sunday’s runoff election.
With more than 99% of polling stations counted, Kast won 58.16% of the vote, defeating the leftist candidate Jeannette Jara, who took 41.84%. Jara previously served as labour minister under the outgoing president, Gabriel Boric.
Kast, the son of a former Nazi party member and an outspoken admirer of the late dictator Augusto Pinochet, ran on a hardline platform centred on law and order, migration and traditional social values. A staunch Catholic, he opposes abortion and same-sex marriage.
Speaking to thousands of supporters after the results were announced, Kast said his victory belonged to the nation rather than to any individual or party. “Chile won, and hope won,” he said, describing what he called the public’s desire to live “without fear”.
Analysts say Kast successfully tapped into growing public anxiety over rising violence, despite Chile remaining one of the safest countries in Latin America.
Migration was a central theme of his campaign. Over the past decade, Chile’s migrant population has doubled, driven largely by an influx of around 700,000 Venezuelans fleeing economic collapse.
Kast repeatedly blamed undocumented migrants for insecurity and crime. During the campaign, he warned roughly 330,000 undocumented migrants to leave the country before his inauguration on 11 March or face expulsion.
In his victory speech, he promised a firm approach to security and migration. “We must show great firmness against crime, organised crime, impunity and disorder,” he said.
His proposals include the construction of detention centres, reinforced border infrastructure and an increased military presence along Chile’s northern borders with Peru and Bolivia.
This was Kast’s third presidential bid. He was previously defeated by Boric in the 2021 runoff election.
Boric congratulated Kast in a televised phone call, describing the result as “a clear victory”, and invited him to La Moneda presidential palace on Monday to begin the transition.
Jara conceded defeat later on Sunday, calling for unity and pledging to lead a “constructive” opposition, while condemning violence from any quarter.
International reactions were swift. US secretary of state Marco Rubio congratulated Kast, expressing confidence that Chile would advance shared priorities on security, migration and trade.
Argentina’s far-right president, Javier Milei, hailed Kast’s victory as a step forward for the region, while Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, also offered congratulations and said he would continue to work with the new government.
Although Kast’s win has been viewed by some as part of a wider rightwing shift in South America, others see it as consistent with Chile’s long-standing alternation of power since the end of military rule in 1990.
Despite his strong mandate, Kast will not control an outright majority in either chamber of Congress. He has pledged to cut public spending by $6bn within 18 months, though details of how this will be achieved remain unclear.
“There are many things about what a Kast government will look like that we don’t know,” said Rossana Castiglioni, a political scientist at the Universidad Diego Portales. “Where there is far less uncertainty is on security policy, which was the backbone of his campaign.”
