Chile Welcomes José Antonio Kast: A New Era of Right-Wing Leadership Begins

José Antonio Kast assumed the presidency of Chile on Wednesday, becoming the most right-wing head of state since the return to democracy in 1990. The 60-year-old lawyer received the presidential sash with an embroidered coat of arms at the National Congress in Valparaíso, marking a significant moment in Chile's political history as no leader since the return of democracy had incorporated this institutional symbol; the last to do so was dictator Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990). Instead of making a formal promise, Kast swore to faithfully carry out his duties, a move imbued with a religious undertone as it implies accepting the role before God. Kast is keen to signal that his team will begin work immediately on the promised emergency government. He has scheduled onsite activities for later on Wednesday and plans to move into La Moneda Palace the same evening. Outgoing President Gabriel Boric welcomed Kast, his ideological opposite, in a casual manner, appearing without a tie to a round of applause. Kast, donning a tie, walked toward the podium alongside the first lady, Pía Adriasola, breaking protocol to greet foreign and local dignitaries personally. The inauguration ceremony was attended by over 1,150 guests, during which Kast formally appointed 24 ministers—13 men and 11 women—calling each to assume their posts individually. The ceremony lasted nearly 50 minutes, after which Kast exited the Congress, again exchanging warm gestures with dignitaries, including a notable embrace with Argentina’s president, Javier Milei. Other prominent figures at the event included Spain's King Felipe VI and the presidents of Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Kast spent his first night at the presidential residence of Cerro Castillo in Viña del Mar, where he had initially planned to hold an early bilateral meeting with Milei, later cancelled due to scheduling conflicts. A planned meeting with Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was also cancelled after he withdrew, shortly after it became known that Kast's team had invited Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, a potential rival in Brazil's next presidential race, to the inauguration, which he accepted. On a positive note for Kast, Chile’s traditional right-wing parties secured administrative control of both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. Newly sworn-in legislators elected members of the Chile Vamos coalition to preside over both bodies; in the Senate, an agreement with center-left parties led to the election of Paulina Núñez from the National Renewal (RN) party as its president, while Jorge Alessandri from the Independent Democratic Union (UDI) won in the lower house. Although the right-wing coalition holds 76 out of 155 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, they fall short of an outright majority, partially due to the 14 seats held by the populist Party of the People (PDG), which remains a pivotal force in the balance of power. In a significant gesture of unity, one of Kast's first actions was to resign from the Republican Party, the far-right political organization he founded in 2019. He had previously indicated this intention to unify the broader right-wing coalition that backed him during the December runoff, where he defeated left-wing candidate Jeannette Jara. Kast is not the first president to leave his party before taking office; former presidents Sebastián Piñera and Patricio Aylwin also took similar steps in prior administrations. Before heading to the National Congress, Kast participated in an official photograph with his ministers at Cerro Castillo Palace, marking the first formal image of the newly formed cabinet. During this appearance, he made a public statement regarding an attack on a police officer in Punta Arenas, asserting, "When a Carabineros officer is attacked, all of us are attacked. This is going to change because we are going to pursue them, find them, imprison them, and apply the full force of the law without ambiguity," implicitly criticizing the Boric administration. After a lunch with international leaders attending the inauguration, Kast planned to head to Santiago for his first onsite activity, opening the school year at Liceo Augusto D'Halmar in the Ñuñoa district. He also has a second event planned for Thursday, which will involve declaring a cancer emergency at a primary healthcare center, accompanied by several female ministers. This will mark the next step in advancing his agenda as he leads Chile into a new political chapter. Related Sources: • Source 1 • Source 2