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Chile Will Choose Their New President On Sunday
by Brian McAfee
On Sunday, December 15, Chileans will go to the polls to decide who will represent them as president for the next four years. The favorite, Michelle Bachelet, had served as president from 2006 to 2010 and now has a significant lead over her competitor Evelyn Matthei. Bachelet, representing the Socialist Party, says that she intends to increase corporate taxes and spend more in improving Chile's education system and infrastructure development. Matthei has said she would increase the minimum wage and improve pensions. She also stated her opposition to gay marriage and abortion in a recent debate.
The two women had had very different family situations when they were young. Michelle Bachelet had been briefly imprisoned and tortured and her father was imprisoned, tortured and died in one of Augusto Pinochet's prisons because he supported President Salvador Allende. Evelyn Matthei's father supported Pinochet and was a member of his government.
Bachelet, should she win, which seems likely, will be interesting to watch. Chile has the worlds largest copper deposits, Which had a lot to do with Washington's eagerness to make Allende disappear, and as long as that continues there is potential for infrastructure development improve all Chileans standard of living.
Most of South America's political leaders (presidents) are Leftists, It will be interesting to see if Sundays election result continues that trend.
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I welcome any comments or suggestions. -Brian McAfee brimac6@hotmail.com
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