Opposition Candidate
Pinera Wins Chile's Presidential Election
SANTIAGO - Sebastian Pinera, presidential
candidate for Chile's right-wing opposition,
won 51.6 percent of Sunday's second-round
presidential vote, with 99.2 percent of
votes counted, Patricio Rosende, the
nation's deputy interior minister announced
on Sunday.
The ruling coalition candidate, Eduardo Frei,
ended the contest with 48.3 percent of the
vote. The figures confirm that Pinera, a
businessman, will lead Chile's next
government, which takes office on March 11
and replace the incumbent administration led
by Michelle Bachelet. The result matches all
the pre-election forecasts by media and
analysts for a narrow victory by the
businessman.
It is the first defeat for the ruling center
left wing coalition since it took power in
1990 and the first electoral victory for the
right in 52 years.
Meanwhile, Frei conceded defeat at a press
conference.
"The election is over and Chileans have
shown civic maturity," Frei said. "The
results clearly show the solidity of our
democracy. It has been clean and transparent
in line with our tradition. I want to
congratulate Pinera, to whom most Chileans
have given their trust for the next four
years," he added.
Frei said he hoped that the social progress
and freedoms won by his coalition could be
preserved.
"I want to send a message to center left
forces to maintain unity and to hold the
flags of social justice and freedom high
going forward," he said. "We will put
Chile's interest first and will be the
guardians of freedom and social progress."
Pinera is a partner in several of the
nation's largest businesses including
airline LAN Chile, publisher Los Andes,
television channel Chilevision.
He was born in 1949 in Chile's capital
Santiago, and earned an economics degree in
the capital's Catholic University and a
master degree at Harvard University in the
U.S.. He was the nation's ambassador to
Belgium and to the United Nations during the
dictatorship period, and served in the
Senate from 1990 to 1998. He was president
of the Senate from 2006 to 2008 and is
currently senator for Los Rios region.
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