Chile We are studying and Republicans refuse to join because “they are weakened”

One of the issues that were on the agenda of former President Sebastián Piñera, before his tragic accident, were the October elections in which governors, regional councilors, councilors and mayors will be defined. In his mind, former collaborators of the president warn, was the idea of ​​assembling as soon as possible an opposition bloc that would range from Democrats to the Republican Party. Various figures from Chile Vamos have made it clear that this is the design they want to build, however, there is still no clarity and time is running out, since in March the plan has to be defined. In Republicans, meanwhile, some of their parliamentarians are quick to rule out joining Chile Vamos, because they feel weakened after the defeat in the last constitutional plebiscite.

There are those who think that this electoral agreement can project a programmatic alliance of the right that can even govern. Deputy Frank Sauerbaum, head of the RN caucus, hopes that all parties that feel opposition will manage to unite so that “we can give the country a programmatic alternative to face the next elections.”

Regarding this, the parliamentarian adds that “the ultimate goal is to act in unity and demonstrate that we are an alternative not only electorally, but also to govern the country and give it stability, which is what is most required.” However, within Chile Vamos they believe that this idea is hasty and confirm that there is another incentive.

This union is not synonymous with an opposition bloc that will share the same programmatic and ideological criteria, warn sources within Chile Vamos, but rather it is sustained by a practical calculation that responds to an electoral strategy. Different opposition voices agree with the calculation. The ruling party will have unique candidates from the Communist Party to the Christian Democrats and these will have the support – until now immovable – that President Gabriel Boric has, 30%.

With this scenario in front of us, Chile Vamos understands that, in the event that in a commune, for example, an official candidate is presented, one from Democrats, another from Chile Vamos and another Republican, that 30% official candidate becomes a much larger majority. more competitive. So, in order to not dilute the votes among opponents, Chile Vamos seeks to be the articulator of this opposition front.

The president of Evópoli, Gloria Hutt, responds that “it is premature to extrapolate, it is very important to resolve the municipal stage with the best possible success because that will help us in the next stage, which is the parliamentary and presidential stage.” Hutt added that the conversation about the Government pact is something that “requires maturing.”

March is a key month. Characters from Chile Vamos have appeared in the press arguing that the best way to face the elections in October is through a broad agreement between opposition parties. If there are primaries, which is most likely, these would be in June, which means that the pacts must be registered by the month of April and there is still no agreement in Chile. Let’s move on to the design of the electoral strategy.

Now, it should be noted that there are four elections that will be held and they have characteristics that complicate the types of agreements that are intended to be reached. In single-member elections, such as the election of mayor and Governor, the most likely thing, they warn in Chile Vamos and in Republicans, is that an agreement will be reached by omission. As for Democrats, the same option is being evaluated or including them in the pact.

Sauerbaum believes that with the Republican Party “we are going to have agreements by omission in many parts of the country, that is being seen in concrete terms.” However, he warns that “at the national level, they do not have a large number of candidates, therefore, they will surely privilege some sectors where they can effectively get their candidates.”

Hutt, for her part, maintains that “we have an interest in maximizing the probability that our candidates win,” but that also brings with it “several challenges,” says the former minister and constitutional advisor. The first is, she says, “to select the candidates very well, who have a good track record, a good rapport with people and that we all agree that they are the best candidate.” The Evópoli helmsman indicates that there are still no definitions, since the conversation “is still open.” “It is something that has not been closed within Chile Vamos,” she says.

The other type of election, if we can call it that, are multi-member elections, that is, those in which a list of candidates is presented. In this case, for the election of regional councilors and councillors.

Various sources assure that José Antonio Kast’s party has already announced that they would present their own lists, so an agreement in those elections would be ruled out. Now, the crux is that Chile Vamos has not yet resolved whether they will present lists as a coalition or, as usual, by party. In addition, how to include Democrats in that design is still being evaluated.

“We as Chile Vamos have not yet defined the way to go together. We can go with lists by party or in electoral pacts of two or three parties. We haven’t defined it yet. The formula that we have used before has been that each party has a list of individual councilors and a single candidate for mayor,” says the head of the RN bench.

The independent deputy, but member of the Republican bench in Congress, Stephan Schubert, has the same reading as in Chile Vamos.

The parliamentarian understands that the opposition has to manage to “work together, because in the elections we have to ideally present one candidate per commune.”

The victory of Against made the Republican Party pay the costs of a second failed constituent process. One of the theses that Schubert rejects is that they bow to Chile Vamos because they are weakened.

“We bet, with very low citizen approval, and we ended up with 44, 45%,” says the parliamentarian. Furthermore, he acknowledges: “We lost.” However, “electorally there was growth and it is shown that the vote that José Antonio Kast received continued to be received by A Favor,” maintains the deputy. The legislator clarifies that, although they are not the same, “it does show that there is still support.”

As for Democrats, there has been talk that they are the center to conquer, but so far no negotiations have become real.

Joanna Pérez, head of the party’s deputies, assures that “we have not talked about a municipal pact” and that they are focused on their territorial work. Now, she does not rule out entering into a pact by omission with the opposition world.