With Gabriel Boric as favorite, the presidential race begins in Chile | It was the candidates’ first debate before the November 21 elections

From Santiago

The presidential race has started in Chile, in the midst of the process of drafting the new Constitution which will replace that of 1980 – established under the Pinochet dictatorship – and there are more doubts than certainties. On the one hand, there would be a 50% of Chileans undecided, according to the recent survey by the Center for Public Studies (CEP). On the other hand, although the effervescence of the social epidemic that began in October 2019, with more than a million people demonstrating in Santiago alone seems to have subsided, it could reappear if the fourth withdrawal of funds from pension is rejected, a measure justified. due to the supposed economic normalization after the deconfinement of the country several weeks ago after the drop in Covid-19 infections. And finally there are the candidates themselves November 21 elections whose proposals do not fit with the supposed new winds of change blowing in Chile.

All of this could be seen during the first presidential debate last night, hosted by CNN Chile and Chilevisión. With a scenography that included a projection of the Palacio de La Moneda, the candidates were presented Gabriel Boric (I approve of Dignidad, a conglomerate that includes the young Frente Amplio and the Communist Party), Sebastien sichel (Chile Podemos Más, which includes the ruling right: UDI, RN and Evopoli), Yasna Provost (New Social Pact, formed by the parts of the old consultation: DC, PS and PPD, among others), Jose antonio kast (Republican Party and Christian-Social Front) and Eduardo Artés (Patriotic Union). These last two representatives of the far right and the far left, respectively. Only two candidates were missing: Marco Enriquez-Ominami and Franco Parisi. The first because he was at home in quarantine after attending the Celac summit in Mexico and the chains demanded a physical presence. The second is in the United States and was recently accused of owing 200 million Chilean pesos in child support.

Boric, the favorite

According to the aforementioned survey, Boric is the favorite with 13%. The 35-year-old deputy, whose leadership was born after the major student demonstrations of 2011 and who was able to seal the 2019 Peace Agreement which would generate the constituent process, in the face of criticism from a large part of his own sector, the Broad Avant and the PC. After having beaten by 60.43% of the vote the Communist candidate, and favorite of the polls since last year, Daniel Jadue in the primary of the left, which obtained 39.57%, his position seems to have consolidated. Although the theory still exists, rejected by the vanquished himself, that his triumph was due not so much to his political leadership as to the rejection the CP provokes in the average Chilean voter.

In any case, in the debate, Boric remained calm, even when he was summoned by Kast – a populist mix of Bolsonaro with Milei – to go to visit Ricardo Palma Salamanca, one of the accused of Jaime’s murder. Guzmán, in Paris. Pinochet’s right-hand man in 1991. Its history has been marked by support for diversity, respect for the environment and a fairer economy, which would correspond in a way to what the New Constitution seeks.

Provoste: between Wikipedia and the slip

However, one of the most memorable moments in the debate will be when Provoked —Minister of the two governments of Michelle Bachelet— called Sichel, “Sebastián Piñera”, quickly correcting what he called a slip of the tongue, although it appeared to have been intentional. Indeed: given the official support, the candidate is considered a continuation of the current government no matter how much he tries to point out that he got to the place where he is “without privileges” and that when he was a child he was so poor that his family ate “sea flea soup”, like he appears in a place of the right-wing primaries where he won against Joaquín Lavín, the favorite.

But the enthusiasm and tone of voice of Provoste, which is not real time to be corrected later by the volunteer editors of the web. Sichel himself made it visible in the debate, which generated mockery on the networks.

Beyond these “clashes”, the speech of Provoste focused on gender equality, support for the withdrawal of AFPs and the termination of pregnancy up to 14 weeks, a sensitive subject for his party since historically the Chilean DC, because of its Catholic roots, is against abortion.

Between populism and madness

Although Sichel spoke out against dictatorships at the same time, he stressed that it is not necessary for a country to regroup, also rejecting the violence of the social epidemic and the withdrawal of AFP funds. . Realizing that he is not the frontrunner and is against the clock, he tried to attack Boric for his support of the outbreak – as he had previously attacked for not finishing college or …. not to have children – without being able to provoke it too much.

One who is an expert at annoying rivals is Kast, who, using the same techniques as Trump and Bolsonaro, has sought to provoke by saying he is defending police officers whose institution “does not violate human rights” and ensuring that in countries where abortion There These legal mothers are more likely to die, without citing a source or study. At one point, he reminded Provoste of the misuse of public education resources when she was Minister of Education (which ended in a constitutional indictment against her in 2008) and she replied that he “made lying a very important element”.

Artés, for his part, defended the role of the state, called the Piñera government a “murderer” and hailed “all the victims of the popular uprising”. With a very sixties language, he looked like a time traveler allowed to speak by his rivals and even the mocking Kast only smiled while defending ideas which said in the mouth of Boric or Provoste would have motivated a long discussion such as the need to rebuild the Armed Forces.