+

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.

Close
HomeQuizzoneWhatsappShare Flash Reads
 

Chile elects 35-year-old leftist Gabriel Boric to the presidency, making him one of the world's youngest leaders

Dec 20, 2021, 08:07 IST
Business Insider
Presidential candidate Gabriel Boric talks during his closing campaign rally ahead of the presidential run-off election in in Santiago, Chile, Thursday, Dec. 16, 2021.AP Photo/Matias Delacroix
  • Leftist candidate Gabriel Boric's platform focused on radical reforms to address inequality.
  • Boric's opponent, José Antonio Kast, conceded only 90 minutes after polls had closed.
Advertisement

Chileans elected 35-year-old Gabriel Boric as their next president, making him the youngest person elected president in the country's history.

Boric, a lawmaker and former student protest leader, incorporated promises of radical reforms on inequality into his platform, including raising taxes on the rich, expanding the country's social safety net, creating a greener economy, and drafting a new Constitution, The New York Time reported.

"I am going to give the best of me to rise to this tremendous challenge," Boric said during a public video call with outgoing president, Sebastián Piñera, according to The Times. "I will be the president of all Chileans."

His opponent, right-wing candidate José Antonio Kast, conceded only 90 minutes after the polls closed and half of the ballots were counted, according to the BBC. While Boric and Kast ran on vastly different platforms, both men belong to political parties that have never been represented in Chile's government.

Kast congratulated Boric and said on Twitter "from now on, he is the president elect of Chile and deserves all our respect and constructive collaboration."

Advertisement

You are subscribed to notifications!
Looks like you've blocked notifications!
Next Article