Former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet of the center-left Concertacion coalition seems poised to win the upcoming presidential elections, scheduled for Nov. 17. She will supersede Sebastian Pinera who replaced her in March 2010; Chile's constitution forbids consecutive terms.
Pinera entered office at a time of change in Chile. The country has a comparatively young representative government, having moved out of dictatorship and into a democratic system in 1990. In the wake of the dictatorship, there was a small population boom, the outcome of which was an upsurge of people who are now between the ages of 15 and 30. This new generation is composed of Chileans who have no living memory of the dictatorial regime of Chilean President Augusto Pinochet and grew up in an increasingly open social environment that permitted the development of a protest culture. This, combined with the economic challenges facing society, has produced a sustained period of public unrest that began under Bachelet's last administration and has intensified under Pinera.
Chile is clearly undergoing a generational shift, and the social demands on the political system are growing in magnitude. Neoliberal economic policies and rigid political structures promoted early growth and stability for Chile, though Santiago has faced a wide range of social challenges after Pinochet. Chile has achieved consistent growth on the back of strong copper exports, making notable progress in reducing poverty. However, there remains a wide gap in income distribution and Chile remains the most economically unequal nation in Latin America. In short, not everyone has benefited equally from economic growth, and this continues to fuel social unrest.
