Chile has elected its most far-right leader since the end of military rule, with José Antonio Kast securing a decisive victory in the presidential runoff on 14 December 2025. The controversial figure, known for his hardline social views and stringent immigration policies, defeated leftist candidate and former labour minister Jeannette Jara by a significant margin, capturing 58.16% of the vote.
A Victory Celebrated by the Global Right
Kast's triumph was swiftly applauded by a constellation of right-wing and populist leaders worldwide. Congratulations poured in from figures including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Italy's Giorgia Meloni, Argentina's libertarian President Javier Milei, and X owner Elon Musk. This international endorsement underscores Kast's placement within a growing axis of conservative power, reflecting a broader political trend sweeping across both Latin America and parts of Europe.
The son of a former Nazi party member, a staunch Catholic, and a father of nine, Kast built his campaign on a platform starkly opposing abortion and same-sex marriage. His central rallying cry, however, was a promise to tackle crime by clamping down on immigration. He pledged to expel an estimated 330,000 undocumented migrants, predominantly Venezuelans, and to fortify Chile's borders with a combination of walls, electric fences, trenches, and an increased military presence—policies openly inspired by the playbook of former US President Donald Trump.
Pinochet Admiration and Democratic Fears
Analysts note that Kast's win continues a cycle of swings between left and right in Chilean politics over the past 15 years. However, he stands apart as the first president elected since the 1990 end of Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship to openly express admiration for the former military ruler. During the 2017 campaign, Kast stated, "If [Pinochet] were alive, he would vote for me." Pinochet's regime was responsible for the deaths of over 3,000 people and the torture of tens of thousands.
This historical alignment has sparked deep concern among observers of Chilean democracy. Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser, a populism researcher at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, warned that Kast's victory represents "a return to the origins of a right that clearly did not have democratic credentials." Kaltwasser fears the conventional right may shift permanently further to the right, eroding democratic forces within that spectrum.
Part of a Regional Hardline Surge
Kast's election is viewed as the latest crest in a right-wing wave moving through Latin America, following recent electoral successes in Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina, and potentially Honduras. This shift is coupled with a growing regional appetite for aggressive security measures, heavily influenced by the perceived success of El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele. Kast counts himself among Bukele's admirers, despite the Salvadoran leader's mass incarceration of over 81,000 people under a state of emergency, a policy widely condemned by human rights groups.
Sandra Pellegrini, a senior analyst for ACLED, links this trend to a public prioritisation of security over civil liberties. "What people are not seeing, or seem not to worry about, is the trade-off behind such a decrease [in crime]—which has been a striking surge in state-perpetrated violence and human rights violations," she stated.
The geopolitical landscape is also a factor. Pellegrini's research suggests that US military posturing and strikes in the region, justified under a "war on drugs," may pressure governments to align with Washington's foreign policy goals. This dynamic, she argues, risks normalising extrajudicial actions and lowering the cost of committing human rights violations for governments across Latin America.
As José Antonio Kast prepares to take office, his presidency poses profound questions for Chile's democratic institutions and signals a powerful consolidation of far-right influence in the Americas, with potential repercussions for regional stability and human rights for years to come.
