General elections were held in Chile on 16 November 2025. Voters went to the polls to elect the 38th president of Chile, renew all 155 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, and fill 23 of the 50 seats in the Senate. Republican Party candidate José Antonio Kast defeated Communist Party member Jeannette Jara in a runoff election on 14 December.
In the first round, Jara, a member of the Communist Party of Chile, won a plurality of the vote. Kast, who has been described as conservative or hard-right, placed second. Combined, right-leaning candidates received approximately 70 percent of the first-round presidential vote. Johannes Kaiser and Evelyn Matthei, both candidates on the right, endorsed Kast for the runoff, while Franco Parisi declined to make an endorsement, calling on his voters to decide themselves who to vote for. In the runoff, Kast defeated Jara in a landslide victory with 58% of the vote, the second-highest percentage of the vote since Chile's transition to democracy. Kast received 7.2 million votes, which was the highest ever vote total in Chile's history. He won in all sixteen regions of the country.
In the parliamentary election, Unidad por Chile, a coalition of the ruling leftist and center-left parties, emerged as the largest bloc of the Chamber of Deputies, while in the Senate the left-wing and right-wing blocs reached a tie with 25 senators each.
This was the first general election since the reintroduction of compulsory voting in 2022.
General elections were held in Chile on 16 November 2025. Voters went to the polls to elect the 38th president of Chile, renew all 155 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, and fill 23 of the 50 seats in the Senate. Republican Party candidate José Antonio Kast defeated Communist Party member Jeannette Jara in a runoff election on 14 December.
In the first round, Jara, a member of the Communist Party of Chile, won a plurality of the vote. Kast, who has been described as conservative or hard-right, placed second. Combined, right-leaning candidates received approximately 70 percent of the first-round presidential vote. Johannes Kaiser and Evelyn Matthei, both candidates on the right, endorsed Kast for the runoff, while Franco Parisi declined to make an endorsement, calling on his voters to decide themselves who to vote for. In the runoff, Kast defeated Jara in a landslide victory with 58% of the vote, the second-highest percentage of the vote since Chile's transition to democracy. Kast received 7.2 million votes, which was the highest ever vote total in Chile's history. He won in all sixteen regions of the country.
In the parliamentary election, Unidad por Chile, a coalition of the ruling leftist and center-left parties, emerged as the largest bloc of the Chamber of Deputies, while in the Senate the left-wing and right-wing blocs reached a tie with 25 senators each.
This was the first general election since the reintroduction of compulsory voting in 2022.
Background
The 2021 presidential election saw left-wing candidate Gabriel Boric, a former student protest leader during the 2011–2013 student protests, defeat conservative rival José Antonio Kast in a runoff. Boric's victory was attributed to widespread youth mobilization, dissatisfaction with the center-right administration of Sebastián Piñera, and economic strains following the COVID-19 pandemic. His platform emphasized social equity, feminist reforms, and a "dignified life" for marginalized groups, pledging to dismantle Chile's "patriarchal inheritance".
By mid-2023, Boric's approval ratings had plummeted to 28%, with 66% disapproving of his administration, according to polls. Analysts cited economic stagnation, legislative gridlock, and public safety concerns as primary factors. The right-wing Republican Party, led by Kast, capitalized on this discontent, securing a dominant victory in the May 2023 Constitutional Council elections, resulting in the failed 2023 Chilean constitutional referendum. Kast declared the results a mandate for "a major change in government", positioning himself as a frontrunner for 2025. Meanwhile, Evelyn Matthei of the Independent Democratic Union (UDI) also gained traction in opinion polls.
Electoral system
This was the first presidential and congressional election since a constitutional amendment was passed and promulgated on 27 December 2022, restoring compulsory voting for all elections and plebiscites for the first time since 2012, except in primary elections. Eligible citizens who did not vote faced a fine of approximately 33,000 pesos (around US$35).
President
The President is elected using the two-round system; if no candidate receives over 50% of the vote to win outright in the first round, a second round will be held.
Senate: The 50 senators serve staggered eight-year terms. Half the chamber (25 seats) is renewed each general election, elected from 16 regional constituencies (2–5 seats each) under similar proportional rules.
Presidential candidates
Registered
Seven of the following eight candidates were registered with the Electoral Service (Servel) and were accepted on 29 August 2025. Jeannette Jara, as a primary winner, was automatically registered as a candidate on 14 July 2025.
Withdrawn
Félix González (Green Ecologist Party), deputy for District 20 in the Biobío Region, announced his presidential bid on 6 January 2025, saying, "we have decided to collect the signatures to register an ecologist candidacy, because environmental issues are absent from the public agenda." He emphasized urgent social and climate security, adding, "we have the obligation to raise pensions... and face fires, floods, and droughts." González ultimately did not register and did not appear on the November 2025 ballot.
Vlado Mirosevic (Liberal Party, PL), deputy for District 1 in the Arica and Parinacota Region, was proclaimed his party's presidential candidate on 12 October 2024 and planned to run in the center-left primaries. But with the Liberal Party lacking national status, it needed 35,361 signatures to validate his candidacy; by 31 March, it had only 9,851 members. Mirosevic withdrew on 16 April 2025 and endorsed Carolina Tohá. He denied the signature shortfall was the reason, arguing that multiple candidates from the PS, PPD, and PL risked handing victory to the Communist Party, and called Tohá the most competitive option.
Francesca Muñoz (Christian Social Party, PSC), deputy for District 20 in the Biobío Region, was proclaimed her party's presidential candidate on 29 April 2025, following the resignation of Senator Rojo Edwards and amid a new alliance with the Republican and National Libertarian parties. But on 30 June, she ended her bid and endorsed José Antonio Kast, calling the moment one that "demands brave, generous, and responsible decisions," and urging her supporters to back his candidacy.
Ximena Rincón (Demócratas), senator for the Maule Region, was proclaimed as the party's presidential candidate on 15 March 2025. The party indicated it would explore the possibility of joining a primary with other political forces, emphasizing a centrist path "far from the extremes" and aiming for broader parliamentary representation. Rincón framed her prospective campaign around dialogue and moderation, asserting that Chile could "once again be admired and respected around the world." However, she ultimately did not register her candidacy with Servel and therefore did not appear on the ballot for the November 2025 election.
Marcelo Trivelli (independent, ex-DC), former intendant of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, ended his presidential bid on 31 July 2025 after failing to gather the 36,000 signatures required to run as an independent. He acknowledged the lack of both citizen support and backing from the Christian Democratic Party, which instead endorsed Jeannette Jara. Trivelli criticized the DC for "abandoning its historic convictions" and stated he would continue working on initiatives promoting social cohesion.
Alberto Undurraga (Christian Democratic Party, DC), deputy for District 8 and party president, formally withdrew his presidential candidacy on 10 May 2025 during a National Council meeting, following mounting internal criticism and isolation from broader center-left alliances. Though previously proclaimed by the party to run in primaries, the DC's Supreme Tribunal annulled the mandate after no pact was reached and the primary deadline passed. Amid growing dissent and key figures like Ignacio Walker and Genaro Arriagada endorsing Carolina Tohá, Undurraga acknowledged that internal conditions were not conducive to a viable candidacy. He cited the need to avoid damaging the party and pledged to focus on parliamentary negotiations and promoting the DC's programmatic agenda.
Paulina Vodanovic (Socialist Party, PS), senator for the Maule Region and PS president, withdrew her presidential candidacy on 28 April 2025, just two weeks after being unanimously proclaimed by the party's central committee. She cited the lack of support from other parties and the need to back a unified candidacy within the center-left, which consolidated around Carolina Tohá. Vodanovic stated that continuing her campaign would have required political conditions that did not materialize and emphasized the importance of unity against the right.
Declined
Michelle Bachelet (Socialist Party), former president of Chile (2006–2010, 2014–2018), announced on 5 March 2025 that she would not run for a third term, stating that "good politics demands renewal." Her decision ended months of speculation within the ruling coalition. In a statement from her foundation Horizonte Ciudadano, she said others in her sector were "valuable and capable", and pledged to support whoever is ultimately chosen to represent the center-left in the November election.
Rodolfo Carter (UDI–Chile Vamos), former mayor of La Florida
Rojo Edwards (Christian Social Party, PSC), senator for Santiago, was briefly considered a potential presidential candidate by the PSC. In an initial internal vote, he was selected without unanimous support from the party's parliamentary members. However, at a second meeting, Edwards rejected the political guidelines set by the PSC for its presidential nominee. On 23 April 2025, the party's national leadership revoked his candidacy, citing the need for a candidate aligned with its political project. On 28 April 2025, he resigned from the party.
Daniel Jadue (Communist Party), former mayor of Recoleta, declined to pursue a presidential bid after his party proclaimed Labor Minister Jeannette Jara as its candidate on 5 April 2025. Jadue, under house arrest in connection with the "People's Pharmacies" case, had previously expressed interest in returning to the race. Communist Party president Lautaro Carmona announced that Jadue would instead run for deputy in the 9th district, replacing Karol Cariola, who is seeking a Senate seat in Valparaíso. However, that deputy candidacy did not materialize either because the Election Certification Tribunal (Tricel) excluded Jadue from the electoral register and barred him from appearing on the ballot, effectively preventing him from running for deputy.
Claudio Orrego (independent, ex-DC), re-elected governor of the Santiago Metropolitan Region on 24 November 2024, declined to pursue a presidential candidacy despite speculation following his electoral victory. In a press conference after meeting President Gabriel Boric at La Moneda, Orrego ruled out a presidential run, stating, "My only plan is to be governor for the next four years," and said, "We'll have to look for other leaderships."
On 1 September 2025, all candidates for the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate were announced; 1,091 candidates for the Chamber of Deputies and 130 for the Senate:
Change for Chile: Coalition of right-wing parties formed by the Republican Party, the Social Christian Party (PSC), and the National Libertarian Party (PNL).
Unidad por Chile: Coalition of the ruling center-left and left-wing parties: Frente Amplio (FA); the Communist Party (PC); the Socialist Party (PS); the Party for Democracy (PPD); the Radical Party (PR); the Liberal Party (PL); and the Christian Democrats (DC), the latter of which is not part of Boric's government.
Chile Grande y Unido: right-wing coalition of the traditional right-wing Chilean parties composed of National Renewal (RN); the Independent Democratic Union (UDI); Political Evolution (Evópoli), and Democrats.
The campaign for the general election officially began on 17 September 2025 and with eight presidential candidates, the main contest was between Jeannette Jara and José Antonio Kast.
A polarising election, the campaign's main concerns were rising gang violence and migration from Venezuela, rather than traditional economic or social issues.
Among Kast's campaign pledges were cuts to public spending and the creation of a police force against illegal migration inspired by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Analysts also expected the results could pave way for more market friendly initiatives as Kast was favored to win.
In general terms, right-wing and far-right parties proposed fiscal austerity measures, promotion of private investment, reduction of the state and tough security policies such as militarization, mass deportations and police defense. Jara, for her part, advocated for greater state intervention, expansion of social benefits such as basic income, regulation of prices for essential services, strengthening gun control, and temporary biometric registration for immigrants.
Second round
The campaign for the second round began on 17 November. Jeannette Jara started it with an event involving women in the La Pintana neighborhood of Santiago while José Antonio Kast started his campaign in the city of Temuco.