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Supporters of Chilean presidential candidate Gabriel Boric, from the Apruebo Dignidad party, celebrate following the first official results of the runoff presidential election, in Santiago, on December 19, 2021 (Photo by MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP via Getty Images)
'Historically Large Win': Chile Votes for Socialism Over Fascism
With 97% of 46,887 polling stations reporting Sunday, Gabriel Boric had 56% of the votes, compared to 44% for his opponent
Dec 19, 2021
BREAKING: Gabriel Boric defeats Jose Antonio Kast - 56% to 44%.
The Associated Press is reporting:
A leftist millennial who rose to prominence during anti-government protests was elected Chile's next president Sunday after a bruising campaign against a free-market firebrand likened to Donald Trump.
Kast recognized defeat and called his opponent to congratulate him on his "grand triumph" as supporters of Boric gathered in downtown Santiago to celebrate.
EARLIER:
Chile chose Sunday between two presidential candidates offering starkly contrasting visions for their future-- a far-right fascist and a Democratic Socialist candidate to lead the country through constitutional changes amid a widespread clamor for social reform.
Polls closed at 6:00 pm (2100 GMT) after ten hours of voting in 95 degrees Fahrenheit heat, with voter turnout higher than the 47 percent who turned out for the first election round last month.
The country of 19 million people fears mass protests in response to the outcome of the neck-and-neck race between the son of a Nazi, ultra-conservative Jose Antonio Kast, 55, and former student activist Gabriel Boric, a 35-year-old single, tattooed millennial.
"There are lots of things we want to change about the current model: the total privatization of social rights, the triumph of individualism over cooperation, and a development model based on the extraction of natural resources"
--Gabriel Boric
Common Dreams reported last month:
The two candidates could hardly be more different. Kast, a 55-year-old former congressman and supporter of deceased military dictator Augusto Pinochet--who forcibly imposed neoliberal reforms after deposing democratically elected socialist President Salvador Allende in a bloody U.S.-backed coup on September 11, 1973--has drawn comparisons to other right-wing authoritarians, including Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Throughout his reactionary campaign, Kast, a Catholic opponent of abortion and marriage equality, has vowed to crack down on crime and migration, calling for the creation of a vast ditch to deter would-be immigrants.
Congressman Boric, on the other hand, rose to prominence as a key leader, alongside fellow lawmakers Camila Vallejo and Giorgio Jackson, of the 2011 student movement for free, quality public higher education.
The 35-year-old progressive has advocated for recovery from the coronavirus crisis that curbs inequality and environmental degradation, with a focus on expanding and improving the Chilean welfare state--underdeveloped and highly privatized since the Pinochet-era interventions of the Chicago Boys, a group of market fundamentalist economists trained by Milton Friedman and others.
...David Adler, general coordinator of Progressive International, which sent delegates to Chile to observe the election, warned that Kast's supporters--taking a page out of "the new authoritarian playbook" deployed by Trump and Bolsonaro--have preemptively attacked Chile's electoral service in an effort "to sow distrust in democratic institutions and pave the way for false claims of fraud" if Boric wins next month.
Voters around the country complained Sunday that there was a serious shortage of public transportation to take them to their polling stations.
Videos circulating on social media showed long lines at bus stops - in brutal heat - as well as parking lots full of parked buses.
Telesur reported:
Using social networks to make themselves heard on Sunday morning, Chileans denounced that businessmen are prompting a shortage of transport services in Santiago City to sabotage an election in which the leftist presidential candidate Gabriel Boric is the favorite to defeat the far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast.
The absence of transportation occurs on a day with temperatures above 96.8degF and mainly affects low-income people who are walking long distances to get to their polling stations. People blame President Sebastian Pinera's administration for being an accomplice in this attempt to prevent citizens from voting en masse against the neoliberal candidate Kast.
"The government chose the worst path: it boycotts public transport services so that voters from poor neighborhoods do not reach the polling stations," citizen Pedro Calama tweeted, commenting that the maneuver will only manage to widen the favorable vote to Boric.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
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BREAKING: Gabriel Boric defeats Jose Antonio Kast - 56% to 44%.
The Associated Press is reporting:
A leftist millennial who rose to prominence during anti-government protests was elected Chile's next president Sunday after a bruising campaign against a free-market firebrand likened to Donald Trump.
Kast recognized defeat and called his opponent to congratulate him on his "grand triumph" as supporters of Boric gathered in downtown Santiago to celebrate.
EARLIER:
Chile chose Sunday between two presidential candidates offering starkly contrasting visions for their future-- a far-right fascist and a Democratic Socialist candidate to lead the country through constitutional changes amid a widespread clamor for social reform.
Polls closed at 6:00 pm (2100 GMT) after ten hours of voting in 95 degrees Fahrenheit heat, with voter turnout higher than the 47 percent who turned out for the first election round last month.
The country of 19 million people fears mass protests in response to the outcome of the neck-and-neck race between the son of a Nazi, ultra-conservative Jose Antonio Kast, 55, and former student activist Gabriel Boric, a 35-year-old single, tattooed millennial.
"There are lots of things we want to change about the current model: the total privatization of social rights, the triumph of individualism over cooperation, and a development model based on the extraction of natural resources"
--Gabriel Boric
Common Dreams reported last month:
The two candidates could hardly be more different. Kast, a 55-year-old former congressman and supporter of deceased military dictator Augusto Pinochet--who forcibly imposed neoliberal reforms after deposing democratically elected socialist President Salvador Allende in a bloody U.S.-backed coup on September 11, 1973--has drawn comparisons to other right-wing authoritarians, including Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Throughout his reactionary campaign, Kast, a Catholic opponent of abortion and marriage equality, has vowed to crack down on crime and migration, calling for the creation of a vast ditch to deter would-be immigrants.
Congressman Boric, on the other hand, rose to prominence as a key leader, alongside fellow lawmakers Camila Vallejo and Giorgio Jackson, of the 2011 student movement for free, quality public higher education.
The 35-year-old progressive has advocated for recovery from the coronavirus crisis that curbs inequality and environmental degradation, with a focus on expanding and improving the Chilean welfare state--underdeveloped and highly privatized since the Pinochet-era interventions of the Chicago Boys, a group of market fundamentalist economists trained by Milton Friedman and others.
...David Adler, general coordinator of Progressive International, which sent delegates to Chile to observe the election, warned that Kast's supporters--taking a page out of "the new authoritarian playbook" deployed by Trump and Bolsonaro--have preemptively attacked Chile's electoral service in an effort "to sow distrust in democratic institutions and pave the way for false claims of fraud" if Boric wins next month.
Voters around the country complained Sunday that there was a serious shortage of public transportation to take them to their polling stations.
Videos circulating on social media showed long lines at bus stops - in brutal heat - as well as parking lots full of parked buses.
Telesur reported:
Using social networks to make themselves heard on Sunday morning, Chileans denounced that businessmen are prompting a shortage of transport services in Santiago City to sabotage an election in which the leftist presidential candidate Gabriel Boric is the favorite to defeat the far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast.
The absence of transportation occurs on a day with temperatures above 96.8degF and mainly affects low-income people who are walking long distances to get to their polling stations. People blame President Sebastian Pinera's administration for being an accomplice in this attempt to prevent citizens from voting en masse against the neoliberal candidate Kast.
"The government chose the worst path: it boycotts public transport services so that voters from poor neighborhoods do not reach the polling stations," citizen Pedro Calama tweeted, commenting that the maneuver will only manage to widen the favorable vote to Boric.
BREAKING: Gabriel Boric defeats Jose Antonio Kast - 56% to 44%.
The Associated Press is reporting:
A leftist millennial who rose to prominence during anti-government protests was elected Chile's next president Sunday after a bruising campaign against a free-market firebrand likened to Donald Trump.
Kast recognized defeat and called his opponent to congratulate him on his "grand triumph" as supporters of Boric gathered in downtown Santiago to celebrate.
EARLIER:
Chile chose Sunday between two presidential candidates offering starkly contrasting visions for their future-- a far-right fascist and a Democratic Socialist candidate to lead the country through constitutional changes amid a widespread clamor for social reform.
Polls closed at 6:00 pm (2100 GMT) after ten hours of voting in 95 degrees Fahrenheit heat, with voter turnout higher than the 47 percent who turned out for the first election round last month.
The country of 19 million people fears mass protests in response to the outcome of the neck-and-neck race between the son of a Nazi, ultra-conservative Jose Antonio Kast, 55, and former student activist Gabriel Boric, a 35-year-old single, tattooed millennial.
"There are lots of things we want to change about the current model: the total privatization of social rights, the triumph of individualism over cooperation, and a development model based on the extraction of natural resources"
--Gabriel Boric
Common Dreams reported last month:
The two candidates could hardly be more different. Kast, a 55-year-old former congressman and supporter of deceased military dictator Augusto Pinochet--who forcibly imposed neoliberal reforms after deposing democratically elected socialist President Salvador Allende in a bloody U.S.-backed coup on September 11, 1973--has drawn comparisons to other right-wing authoritarians, including Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Throughout his reactionary campaign, Kast, a Catholic opponent of abortion and marriage equality, has vowed to crack down on crime and migration, calling for the creation of a vast ditch to deter would-be immigrants.
Congressman Boric, on the other hand, rose to prominence as a key leader, alongside fellow lawmakers Camila Vallejo and Giorgio Jackson, of the 2011 student movement for free, quality public higher education.
The 35-year-old progressive has advocated for recovery from the coronavirus crisis that curbs inequality and environmental degradation, with a focus on expanding and improving the Chilean welfare state--underdeveloped and highly privatized since the Pinochet-era interventions of the Chicago Boys, a group of market fundamentalist economists trained by Milton Friedman and others.
...David Adler, general coordinator of Progressive International, which sent delegates to Chile to observe the election, warned that Kast's supporters--taking a page out of "the new authoritarian playbook" deployed by Trump and Bolsonaro--have preemptively attacked Chile's electoral service in an effort "to sow distrust in democratic institutions and pave the way for false claims of fraud" if Boric wins next month.
Voters around the country complained Sunday that there was a serious shortage of public transportation to take them to their polling stations.
Videos circulating on social media showed long lines at bus stops - in brutal heat - as well as parking lots full of parked buses.
Telesur reported:
Using social networks to make themselves heard on Sunday morning, Chileans denounced that businessmen are prompting a shortage of transport services in Santiago City to sabotage an election in which the leftist presidential candidate Gabriel Boric is the favorite to defeat the far-right candidate Jose Antonio Kast.
The absence of transportation occurs on a day with temperatures above 96.8degF and mainly affects low-income people who are walking long distances to get to their polling stations. People blame President Sebastian Pinera's administration for being an accomplice in this attempt to prevent citizens from voting en masse against the neoliberal candidate Kast.
"The government chose the worst path: it boycotts public transport services so that voters from poor neighborhoods do not reach the polling stations," citizen Pedro Calama tweeted, commenting that the maneuver will only manage to widen the favorable vote to Boric.
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