Chili elect this Sunday, November 16, at the polls, the successor of the progressive Gabriel Boric with one of its ministers as a favorite, the communist Jeannette Jara, and with attention focused on the dispute between the far-right candidates to see who comes in second place. Jara, a 51-year-old lawyer and administrator, leads the polls with an average of 28.5% in voting intention, which is far from the majority necessary to win the Presidency in the first round and would force a runoff to be held on December 14.
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The former Minister of Labor She was elected the sole candidate of progressivism in primaries and became the first communist activist to represent the sector in presidential electionssomething that many voters see as an obstacle to coming to power.
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To win, However, Jara has assured that he will renounce his militancy to give a sign of unity and highlight that behind it is the broadest coalition in history, ranging from the Christian Democrats to the Communist Party.
Chilean presidential candidate Jeannette Jara, of the Unidad por Chile coalition, takes a selfie with a supporter on November 3, 2025. (Photo by Raul BRAVO / AFP).
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The primaries of the right
The right, meanwhile, decided to go to the polls in fragments. so these elections, in some way, are seen as the primaries of the sector.
It is the first time since the return to democracy that there are two very competitive far-right candidates.
Chilean presidential candidate José Antonio Kast, of the Republican Party, delivers a speech during his campaign closing rally at the Movistar Arena in Santiago, on November 11, 2025. (MARVIN RECINOS / AFP)
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a few weeks ago It seemed clear that José Antonio Kast, 59, would go to the second roundbut a large part of the polls published before the ban show that the leader far-right He would be losing support and his third attempt to reach La Moneda could be at risk.
Photograph taken on November 4, 2025 of the candidate for the Presidency of Chile of the National Libertarian Party, Johannes Kaiser, during a campaign event in Santiago. (EFE/ Elvis González).
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The perpetrator is the deputy Johannes Kaiser, representative of a more radical far-right in its forms and willing to fight the so-called “cultural battle”, whom some surveys place tied at 20% with Kast, his former ally and who has sought to appear more moderate.
Both, in any case, promise to close borders, apply a tough line against irregular migration and crime, lower taxes and reduce the size of the State.
Chilean presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei, of the Chile Vamos coalition, speaks during a debate organized by the business sector at the Santiago Metropolitan Events Center on October 14, 2025. (Photo by Raul BRAVO / AFP).
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The former mayor follows them Evelyn Mattheifrom the traditional rightwhich was the favorite for months but It fell to 14% in the polls.
“The most right-wing election”
If the three right-wing parties unite in the second round, as all experts agree, the chances of Jara reaching La Moneda are slim.
Since 2006, no president has been succeeded by someone of the same political line and power has oscillated between left and right.
The first and only right-winger to come to power so far has been the late Sebastián Piñerawho did so in two non-consecutive terms (2010-2014 and 2018-2022).
“If any of the three become President, It would be the first time that Chile has a Pinochet president elected in the ur“nas”Octavio Avendaño, from the University of Chile, told Efe.
Unlike pineapplewho voted against the continuity of the general Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990) in the 1988 plebiscite, Kast and Mathei campaigned for yeswhile Kaiser said during the campaign that he would support the coup again.
“It is the most right-wing election since the return to democracy. In the first round, the three together could have up to 55% of the votes,” sociologist Alberto Mayol, director of the La Cosa Nostra survey, explained to EFE.
Cycle change
The increase in crime and migration largely explains the rise of the rightbut also a “change of cycle” derived from the disappointment over the unfulfilled commitments after the massive protests of 2019 in favor of improvements in education, health and pensions and a constitutional change.
Added to this is the dissatisfied with the management of Boric, who cannot stand for re-election and will leave power in March with a disapproval rate close to 60%.
“The left failed in its ability to respond to the legitimacy crisis and therefore the sign was reversed.. The rise of this radical far-right arises as a response to the identity-based left that emerged after the outbreak“Mayol indicated.
For Avendaño, “the right has very successfully managed to dominate the agenda and install security, migration and economic growth as central themes of the campaign.”
Unlike the 2021 presidential elections, in which Boric won by a wide margin over kast, “no one is talking about making changes to the neoliberal model anymore,” he added.
In addition to the presidential elections, Chileans will have parliamentary elections on Sunday, an election in which the right-wing parties start as favorites and that will be key to the future governability of the country.
