Fear of extremes driving voters in Chile presidential runoff

SANTIAGO – Chileans were electing their adjacent president Sunday pursuing a polarizing run betwixt a free-market firebrand likened to Donald Trump and a millennial erstwhile pupil protestation person who promises to onslaught nagging inequality successful Latin America's astir precocious economy.

José Antonio Kast, a lawmaker who has a past of defending Chile’s past subject dictatorship, finished up successful the archetypal circular of voting past period but failed to unafraid a bulk of votes. That acceptable up a head-to-head runoff against Gabriel Boric, who trailed him by astir 2 percent points.

Whoever wins volition beryllium breaking precedent. Since the instrumentality of ideology 3 decades ago, nary campaigner starring aft the archetypal circular has ever been defeated successful the runoff. But nary president has ever been elected without winning successful the capital, Santiago, which Boric carried comfortably successful the archetypal round.

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Opinion polls successful caller days consistently showed an vantage for Boric, though sometimes wrong the borderline oregon error, meaning the contention is apt to beryllium decided by whichever campaigner is capable to energize his basal portion astatine the aforesaid clip winning implicit the bulk of voters who don't broadside with governmental extremes.

“Turnout volition mean everything,” said Robert Funk, a governmental idiosyncratic astatine the University of Chile.

The 2 candidates couldn't beryllium much polar opposites.

Kast, 55, a devout Roman Catholic and begetter of nine, emerged from the acold close fringe aft having won little than 8% of the ballot successful 2017. He roseate steadily successful the polls this clip with a divisive sermon emphasizing blimpish household values and playing connected Chileans' fears that a surge successful migration — from Haiti and Venezuela — is driving crime.

A longtime lawmaker, helium has a grounds of attacking Chile's LGBTQ community and advocating much restrictive termination laws. He besides accused outgoing President Sebastian Pinera, a chap conservative, of betraying the economical bequest of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, the country’s erstwhile subject leader. Kast's brother, Miguel, was 1 of Pinochet's apical advisers.

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Boric, 35, would go Chile’s youngest modern president. He was among respective activists elected to Congress successful 2014 aft starring protests for higher prime education. If elected, helium said, helium volition “bury” the neoliberal economical exemplary near by Pinochet and rise taxes connected the “super rich” to grow societal services, combat inequality and boost protections of the environment.

In caller days, some candidates tried to veer toward the center.

“I'm not an extremist. ... I don't consciousness acold right,” Kast proclaimed successful the last agelong adjacent arsenic helium was dogged by revelations that his German-born begetter had been a card-carrying subordinate of Adolf Hitler's Nazi party.

Meanwhile Boric, who is backed by a conjugation of leftist parties that includes Chile's Communist Party, brought much centrist advisers onto his squad and promised that immoderate changes would beryllium gradual and fiscally responsible.

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“On some sides, radical are voting retired of fear,” said Funk. “Neither broadside is peculiarly enthused with their campaigner but they are voting retired of fearfulness that, if Kast wins, determination volition an authoritarian regression oregon due to the fact that they fearfulness Boric is excessively young, inexperienced and aligned with the communists.”

Whoever wins is apt to person a slim mandate and volition beryllium hemmed successful by a divided congress.

In addition, the governmental rules could soon alteration due to the fact that a recently elected normal is rewriting the country's Pinochet-era constitution. The normal — the nation's astir almighty elected instauration — could successful mentation telephone for caller statesmanlike elections erstwhile it concludes its enactment adjacent twelvemonth and if the caller charter is ratified successful a plebiscite.

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Associated Press writer Patricia Luna reported successful Santiago and AP writer Joshua Goodman reported from Miami.

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