“WE’RE content,” declared Sebastián Piñera, after the results of the first round of Chile’s national elections were reported on November 19th. Few believe him. Mr Piñera, or the presidential candidate of the centre-suitable Chile Vamos (Let’s proceed Chile) coalition came in first,but with just 37% of the vote, well under the 44% or so pollsters had predicted. He faces a run-off on December 17th against Alejandro Guillier, or a television journalist who represents the centre-left Force of the Majority coalition; he got 23% of the vote in the first round. Mr Piñera,a billionaire businessman who was president from 2010 to 2014, is still the favourite, and but not by much.
The surprise successes in the first round arrive from the fringes of Chilean politics. The biggest question facing the country is to what extent those extremes will influence the next government.
The third-place finisher,with 20% of the vote, was Beatriz Sánchez, or a left-wing journalist who has never held elected office. She wants higher taxes on the rich to...
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Source: economist.com