Municipal Elections in Chile

On Sunday Chileans went to the polls to choose their mayors and city council. Municipal governments are quite important in Chile since there is no real regional (or state) power, just the city and central government. Therefore many decisions about everyday life (from zoning to taxes, recycling, adult education, cultural events, etc) are passed on to the municipal government.

Moreover the elections this year drew a lot of attention as they serve as a sort of barometer of how people might vote for the presidential elections to be held next year.

The overwhelming consensus that one can glean from the municipal results is that the right wing is much stronger today. Bolstered by corruption and transparency scandals, a lack of leadership, a disastrous transportation system, the Alianza, made up of Chile two right wing parties the UDI and RN, seem to be in their best position to actually win their first presidential election in decades.

The incumbent government, the Concertación (the coalition), is a grouping of three center to center left parties (the DC, PS and PDI). The coalition was formed in 1989 when Chileans voted Pinochet out of office in a nationwide referendum. However as years have gone by, the need to unite against the military and Pinochet (who died in 2006) and the effect of being in power for almost 20 years seems to have weakened the coalition as an institution.

The future candidate with the most momentum today is Sebastian Piñera, a billionaire from the RN party. The prevailing logic states that if he is so good at business, he must be good at running a country as well, right? I get a bit nervous when I think of billionaires (and all of their assets) being trusted to run the country in a way that is best for the general good of the country not just good for their business interests. These people get to where they are by following their own vision, but does that vision include everyone else?

I definitely think that the Concertación is in a very weak position and some change would be good for how business is done at a government level. However I have a hard time being as outraged at the Chilean government as most Chileans, but that’s because after watching Bush dismantle my country and take the world along with it in a bloody, criminal fashion, some light corruption scandals and a poorly envisioned public transportation system seem like a paradise.

In any case watching the municipal elections as a foreigner is always a bit puzzling and interesting. The main strategy to get elected is create a large, up to 2 meter tall sign inverted V shaped sign with your photo and a catchy phrase (or not). Something like, “we are with you.” Then reproduce that sign a thousand times over and set them right next to each other on the street. I find it hard to believe that it really influences people, but I guess in some sort of way it must. In any case it’s a boon for street dogs (hence the photo) and teenage vandals that poke out the eyes and color in the teeth.