Election in Chile

The Trump administration is paying more attention to the Americas than any U.S. government in recent history. In the increasing polarized political landscape, every election matters as it tends to go pretty far to either the right or left. That has been the case in a string of elections in Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Bolivia, Peru and most recently in Honduras and in Chile. The Honduras election is still being counted and contested whereas the election in Chile was a blow-out victory for the right. Chile delivered its sharpest political shift in decades as José Antonio Kast, a hard-right former lawmaker who campaigned on restoring public order and tightening the country’s borders, won the presidency in a decisive vote. Kast, who captured 58% of the vote, enters office with a platform centered almost entirely on security and immigration. It marks the biggest shift to the right since the end of Chile’s military rule in 1990. Kast has openly praised Chile’s former right-wing leader, Augusto Pinochet.

Kast previously ran for president in 2017 and 2021 before breaking through in 2025. His long political trajectory and established conservative identity made him a familiar figure to voters even as he framed this campaign as a mandate for sweeping security reform. In a message that echoes that of President Trump, Kast has pledged mass deportations of undocumented migrants, expanded policing and the deployment of the military to confront drug trafficking and organized crime. He argues that rising homicides and cartel activity demand extraordinary measures, including deadlines for irregular migrants to leave the country before facing enforced removal. His victory reflects a broader regional trend in which voters are turning to candidates who promise crime control rather than ideological transformation.

Kast defeated far left-wing communist candidate Jeannette Jara, a former labor minister who campaigned on expanding social programs, strengthening workers’ rights and raising taxes on high earners to pay for new public benefits. Jara also backed a more lenient immigration policy and emphasized protections for women and LGBTQ Chileans, a clear contrast to Kast’s security-first agenda.

Chile, long considered one of Latin America’s safest countries, has seen a sharp rise in violent crime in the past several years, driven in part by the spread of transnational criminal groups and a surge in drug trafficking. Homicide rates have climbed to their highest levels in decades, and police say organizations such as Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua have expanded extortion, kidnapping and narcotics operations inside the country. Just like in the U.S. the left wants to continue this trend, the right opposes it and the voters seem to prefer living in safety.

Kast also intends to steer Chile toward a more market-oriented economic model, with tax cuts, deregulation and expanded mining development, particularly in lithium and copper, two of the country’s most important exports. He has signaled interest in strengthening ties with the U.S. and other Western partners, even as China remains Chile’s largest trading partner and a major buyer of its mineral output. The Trump administration is excited about this development and aims to build stronger ties with Chile. Kast is also one of South America’s most outspoken critics of Venezuelan leader Maduro, frequently citing Venezuela’s economic collapse and mass migration as warnings for Chile. He has accused Maduro of allowing criminal networks to flourish and has linked Venezuela’s crisis directly to Chile’s migration and security challenges. His party’s lack of a congressional majority could slow or dilute parts of his agenda, but Kast’s decisive margin suggests Chilean voters are prepared to test his hard-edged security strategy after years of political gridlock and rising public anxiety.

Kast’s victory in Chile follows a string of elections in Latin America that have shifted the region to the right in recent years, including in Argentina, Ecuador, and El Salvador, likely also Honduras. This is happening as a result of increased polarization, fear of crime and immigration and a relentless effort from the U.S. to actively support the right-wing parties and candidates. The U.S. even gave Argentina billions of dollars in support right before their midterm election, has been very active in Honduras and has vocally supported Kast in Chile. Since Trump’s return to the White House in 2025, regional dynamics have begun to change. The U.S. will continue to pay more attention to the Americas going forward. There are four vital elections in 2026 in Costa Rica, Peru, Colombia and Brazil and the U.S. will be heavily involved in all of them.