Elections in Chile: Chileans punish political parties when electing their voters | International

The Chilean constitutional convention, which will draft the new Fundamental Charter from next month, will be marked by the diversity and by the little influence that the traditional parties, large coalitions, will have. With 40% of polling stations scrutinized across the country, the independents won 42 of the 155 constituent body seats, which no one expected, according to projections reported by the CCN Chile channel. The ruling right of President Sebastián Piñera has suffered a strong defeat: although it is in the hands of the far-right Republican Party, it has not reached the third of the convention, necessary to be able to negotiate the rules of the new Fundamental Charter: it only obtained 39 seats, according to projections, when at least 52 were needed. The united center-left of the Approve list – which brings together a large part of the Concertación, which ruled Chile between 1990 and 2010 -, obtains 25 conventional, even below the left of the I approve the dignity list, made up of the Communists and the Large Front, which remains with 31 seats at the convention.

In Chile, four elections were held this weekend: in addition to the conventional elections, regional and municipal governors (mayors and councilors) were held. But that of the constituents was the most important because of its implications for the fate of the country: the 155 members of the convention will have in their hands the drafting of the new Fundamental Charter, which will replace the current one. Born in 1980, under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, he has undergone about fifty reforms, most of them since the end of the military regime and the Ricardo Lagos government (2005). When the social epidemic put Chilean democracy on the ropes in October 2019, the political class proposed the constituent path as the only way to channel social demands in an institutional way.

The founding agreement will be diverse, so it is expected that it will be difficult to seal agreements. Estimates from previous weeks indicated that independents would gain between 8 and 16 seats, given the difficulties in securing quotas in a system favoring the lists of large coalitions. Given the difficulties, many candidates without membership have chosen to run with the support of the parties, so that the number of Convention members who are not responsible to collectives and large coalitions could be even higher.

The count was very fast, after two days of elections which were held without fail, as is the tradition in the South American country. Some 14.9 million citizens were called to elect the 155 drafters of the new Constitution, who will constitute a body of parity between men and women and with 17 seats reserved for indigenous peoples. Voters also had to choose regional governors and municipal authorities (mayors and councilors). It was a complex vote, with four votes and a large number of candidates. It is also the first time that a Latin American country has scheduled two voting days for the covid-19 pandemic, which has changed the habits of voters, who are used to voting only on Sunday. On Saturday, the polling stations were protected by the armed forces and the electoral service (Servel), without any incident having been recorded.

The participation worries the authorities and experts, especially in view of the legitimacy of the constituent process, which will reorganize Chile. The change of the Constitution was the response of the political class to the citizens in the midst of the riots of 2019, so that a low rate of participation at the polls would imply a weak adhesion of the population to this institutional exit. According to official figures, on Saturday 20.5% of the electoral lists voted (just over three million voters, out of a total of 14.9 million). There was no consensus around the assessment of this figure. On the one hand, it is an unfavorable context: in the midst of a pandemic with 37,617 active cases, an economic crisis which makes it difficult even to pay for public transport to go to places often far from homes, the postponement of this the election (initially scheduled for April) and the difficulty of a process with four simultaneous votes.

This is the most important election in recent Chilean history. There was a pool of candidates like never before. In a context of weak political party legitimacy, 68% of the candidates for the convention do not militate in any community. The percentage of vaccinated, meanwhile, has no comparison in Latin America. As of Friday, 9,006,139 people had been vaccinated with the first dose and 7,457,662 with both doses, or 49.1% of the target population. From this Monday, the vaccination of healthy thirties is resumed.

“Beyond the results, the important thing is that there is a good level of participation, ideally no less than 51% – similar to the October referendum – with a good geographical distribution, according to socio-economic levels” , explains Daniel Zovatto, regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean of International IDEA, an intergovernmental organization that analyzed the conduct of elections in the context of a pandemic. For Zovatto, this goal “does not seem at all easy”. “Let us hope that it will be carried out to give a good basis of legitimacy to the constituent process, because the Constitution must include everyone”, believes the political scientist, who believes that “Chile should seriously and urgently consider re-implanting compulsory voting “.

With voluntary suffrage introduced in 2012, turnout fell from 87% in 1989 to a record 36% in the penultimate municipal elections of 2016. In the constitutional referendum last October, where 80% of the population opted for the change of the current Constitution, turnout reached 50.91%. Despite the importance of the referendum seven months ago, half of the voters then chose not to vote. Overall, however, Zovatto points out that Chile has achieved “a successful innovation in Latin America with the double consecutive election day”.

With the founding convention that will come into operation in June, Chile will redefine itself on fundamental questions. The body will discuss its political regime and its system of government, because there is a certain consensus that the Chilean presidentialism – exacerbated – has shown shortcomings with the revolts of October 2019. It will debate on the decentralization and regionalization, in a unitary state and strongly centralized in the capital, like the Chilean. The 155 constituents must agree on various issues relating to indigenous peoples, such as their express recognition in the Constitution or multinationality. This is a central question, given the problems of historical relations between the Mapuche people and the Chilean state which have the region of Araucanía in an escalation of violence. The constituent body will discuss the model of economic development, the fate of institutions such as the Constitutional Court, the model of the state – economic and social rights are heated debates – and particularly sensitive issues for markets, such as the autonomy of the Central Bank.

One of the aspects of current concern in Chile is that participation is again lower in poor and popular municipalities. In La Pintana, in the south of the capital, yesterday there was a 13.69% stake. In Vitacura, one of the richest, it reached 41.31%. If the constituent way does not summon the vulnerable in Chile, it would be very complex for a new Constitution to be the basis of the new social pact that the Latin American country needs. In any case, the Servel will shortly communicate the total figures for the two election days.

Subscribe here wing newsletter of EL PAÍS América and receive all the informative keys of the current situation in the region.