Kast takes a mass bath at the end of his campaign: “The third time is the charm”

Among artists it is usually a source of pride to say how many Movistar Arena stadiums they have filled. This Tuesday afternoon, although there was also music, some 14,000 attendees, according to the command, came to hear a political speech. Republican José Antonio Kast decided to close his campaign in the space usually used for concerts with a successful call, a simile of American rallies, but unusual in Chile. “The third time is the charm,” said the far-right presidential candidate in reference to his third attempt to reach La Moneda (2017 and 2021).

His speech was focused on the practically immovable lines of his entire campaign: security, immigration control and attacking the Government of Gabriel Boric and the left-wing candidate, Jeannette Jara. “Jara is Boric and Boric is Jara. Nothing she says or does can change that. She is the successor of a failed government,” he said before his followers who were waving Chilean flags distributed by the Republican’s team.

The majority of attendees, mostly young people and adults from the middle and upper class, and -at first glance-, more feminine than masculine, said that they will vote for Kast this Sunday, November 16 because they want a “tough hand” against crime and see that Chile needs “a change, a radical change.” Those consulted for this chronicle see in the libertarian Johannes Kaiser a bet that is too extreme and Evelyn Matthei, from the traditional right, a politician with a track record, but with contradictory positions.

Kaiser, according to the latest known polls, has been getting closer to Kast in support, but it would be a surprise if it were not the Republican who goes to the second round with Jara. Matthei, who closes her campaign this Thursday, like Kaiser himself, was moved to fourth place by the libertarian.

Kast’s strategy of focusing his campaign on security, immigration control and the economy, and not speaking out on issues of individual freedoms or talking about his defense of the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, as he did in his two previous candidacies, was appreciated by some of those present. “I voted null in 2021 because Kast seemed very extreme to me, but I think it has moderated in recent years. Now Kaiser is the extreme,” said David Burgos, 27, a nursing technician from the southern city of Punta Arenas. “He is the one who represents me the most, but if any of the three on the right wins, I don’t care, the thing is that Jara doesn’t come out,” said Alma Leiva, 48, a bank analyst.

After the Chilean cumbia band Viking 5 lit the mood with songs that are usually heard at New Year’s parties and weddings, a video was shown that presented Kast as a politician who has been defending Carabineros for years and the closure of the border to stop the entry of irregular migrants, with video cuts from previous dates where he was seen making statements along those lines. The thousands of attendees applauded and shouted louder than any other issue, such as education or the economy. Margarita Morales, a 68-year-old retiree, reflected the fatigue of many with foreigners. “The doors were opened a lot to migrants. Now when you get in an Uber and a Chilean is driving it, it makes you want to hug him,” he stated.

Kast, who arrived on stage at 9:00 p.m. accompanied by his wife, Pía Adriasola, an ultra-conservative like him, recalled that 3,000 days ago, together with a small group, they presented their first presidential candidacy. “They told us it was impossible, they laughed, they underestimated us, but here we are: stronger, more mature and more convinced than ever,” said the candidate. “You are the reflection of what we have built in these 3,000 days,” he added before a stadium that shouted: “You feel it, you feel it, Kast president.” Among the audience were Republican leaders, congressmen and candidates for the party’s parliamentarians. Also three mayors from Chile Vamos, the coalition that officially supports Matthei: José Manuel Palacios (UDI), from La Reina; Gustavo Alessandri (RN), from Zapallar; and Rodrigo Contreras (UDI), from Paine. On two occasions, the Republican stressed how hard the road has been, where, he said, there have been “blows” and “insults,” and he congratulated the “bravery” with which his followers have defended their ideas.

“This is not about a presidential election, it is about recovering our country,” he said in a speech where he talked about putting the family back at the center and ending waiting lists in health centers. “We want a country where criminals are afraid and citizens walk free,” he said. At the end, Kast declared himself the winner of the elections. The polls, before the 15-day ban prior to the elections, give it as such in the runoff. He said that this event was the end of a first stage, but that then the second round would come on December 14 and they would arrive in La Moneda on March 11, 2026. “Everything is going to change, everything is going to be fine,” he assured. He said goodbye asking God for strength and wisdom. When he had finished the speech, he returned to the microphone to thank his wife and family.