Chile’s people soundly rejected radical communism in their presidential election this weekend, instead electing José Antonio Kast, who adheres to the country’s Christian, capitalist traditions. Michael Albertus explains the ramifications of Kast’s win in Foreign Policy, writing:

Chile’s runoff presidential election yesterday delivered a resounding victory to the far-right candidate, José Antonio Kast. That immediately won him congratulations from right-wing political leaders around the globe, including U.S. President Donald Trump. Kast campaigned on a promise to crack down on illegal immigration and organized crime and to rekindle Chile’s weak economy. His opponent, the Communist Party politician Jeannette Jara, struggled to convince voters that she could lead on any of these issues.

The return of the right to Chile, and especially the rise of the far right encapsulated in Kast’s victory, will have ripple effects across the hemisphere and beyond. Kast’s win will embolden culture warriors given Kast’s opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage. It will also give momentum to right-wing political movements that focus on hard-line immigration and security policy and further build a growing club of countries that are turning away from mainstream politics.

Chile has had a strong relationship with the United States for decades, spanning trade and economic integration, security cooperation, and relatively stable political and diplomatic ties. Even so, outgoing President Gabriel Boric has harshly criticized Trump on his climate change denialism and the imposition of new tariffs on Chilean goods. The relationship is expected to improve as Kast takes power. A Kast presidency could help to mute opposition among the Organization of American States to U.S. military intervention in Venezuela and increase cooperation in the fight against transnational criminal networks that have expanded in recent years into Bolivia, Chile, and Peru.

The election of Kast will also bring Chile in line with Trump on broader issues linked to security and order. Like Trump, Kast has deployed shrill rhetoric against undocumented immigrants who have sought out Chile as a destination point, many of them Venezuelans fleeing the Maduro regime. He has threatened to round them up and eject them from the country. And echoing Trump, he has also promised to build trenches and a border wall in the north to prevent migrants from spilling into the country in areas where state presence is limited.

Read more here.

Here is Kast’s victory speech, auto-dubbed into English.