 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "President of Chile" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(February 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| President of the Republic of Chile | |
|---|---|
| Presidente de la República de Chile | |
 | |
 | |
| Executive branch of the government of Chile | |
| Style | His Excellency |
| Type | Head of state Head of government |
| Residence | Palace of Cerro Castillo |
| Seat | La Moneda Palace |
| Appointer | Popular vote |
| Term length | Four years, renewable non-consecutively |
| Constituting instrument | Constitution of Chile (1980) |
| Inaugural holder | Manuel Blanco Encalada |
| Formation | June 9, 1826 (199 years ago) (1826-06-09) |
| Succession | Line of succession |
| Deputy | Ministry of the Interior and Public Security (as ex officio "Vice-President") |
| Salary | 155,199,315Chilean pesos/US$190,466 annually[1] |
| Website | www |
.svg) |
|---|
Independent institutions |
 Chile portal |
Thepresident of Chile (Spanish:Presidente de Chile), officially thepresident of the Republic of Chile (Spanish:Presidente de la República de Chile), is thehead of state andhead of government of theRepublic of Chile. The president is responsible for bothgovernment administration and state administration.[2] Although its role and significance have changed overtime, and its position and relations with other actors in thenational political organization have also evolved, it remains one of the most prominent political offices in the country. It is also considered one of the key institutions that form the "Historic Constitution of Chile," and is crucial to the country's political stability.[3]
Under the currentConstitution, adopted in1980, the president serves a four-year term and is not eligible for immediate re-election. The shorter term (previously it was six years) allows for synchronized parliamentary and presidential elections. The president's official seat is theLa Moneda Palace in the capitalSantiago.
Michelle Bachelet was the first female president of Chile and served twice, from 2006 to 2010 and again from 2014 to 2018.[4][5]Gabriel Boric is the current president, having won the2021 Chilean general election and taken office on 11 March 2022.[6]
The origins of Chile as a nation can be traced to 1541, when it was separated from the existing Viceroyalty of Peru by KingCharles I, creating the newKingdom of Chile. The head of state continued to be the king, but he was represented locally by theRoyal Governor.
TheConstitution of 1980, with its 2005 amendment, outlines the qualifications for becoming president. To be eligible, the individual must be anatural-born Chilean citizen or born abroad to Chilean parents or grandparents. They must also be at least 35 years old[7] and meet all the requirements for becoming aSenator.
In addition, the president must have the right to vote as afully Chilean citizen, which includes being at least 18 years of age, not having been sentenced to a severe punishment, not having lost the right to vote due to insanity, not having been tried or condemned for a serious crime or terrorist conduct, nor condemned by theConstitutional Court under Article 8 of the Chilean Constitution.
Article 26 detail the electoral requirements. The president shall be elected by direct ballot, with an absolute majority of the votes validly cast. Atwo-round system is used. In order to win the election in the first round, the winning candidate's party must receive more than 50 percent of the valid votes leaving out of the count blank and spoiled votes.
The election shall be held the third Sunday of November of the year immediately before the end of the administration of the president then holding office. Should there be more than two candidates in the presidential election, none of them obtaining more than half of the votes validly cast, a new election shall be held. The second election ("balloting"), in the manner determined by law, shall be held the fourth Sunday after the first election, limited to the two candidates with the highest relative majorities. Then, the candidate with the majority of valid votes in that round is elected president. Previously, under the 1925 constitution, the Congress of Chile elected the president in the run-off, including (notably) in the1970 Chilean presidential election.
Under the 1828 constitution, the president served for four years, without the possibility of immediate reelection for one more term. In 1833, the presidential period was changed to five years, with a possibility of immediate reelection for one more term, limited to two consecutive terms. Then by a constitutional reform in 1878, possibility for reelection became disallowed. Under the 1925 constitution, the president served for a six-year term, without the possibility of immediate reelection. Non-consecutive election was possible, as seen withJorge Alessandri (president 1958-1964) running a close second in the momentous election of 1970, although ultimately it did not occur.
In the original text of the 1980 constitution, the president served for an eight-year term without the possibility of immediate reelection. Some transitory disposals, fixed during themilitary dictatorship of the generalAugusto Pinochet, allowed the exceptional possibility of his reelection in the1988 plebiscite. Then, in thetransition to democracy the1989 referendum established a first transitional four-year presidential term (1990–1994), followed by common eight-year terms, without the possibility of immediate reelection. However, in 4 March 1994 (a week beforeEduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle took office) the presidential period was reduced to a six-year term, without an immediate reelection.
Under the 2005 constitutional reform, the president serves for four years without the possibility of immediate reelection for one more term. A former president may run for office once again after serving their initial term, but only in an election following their successor, as it is not allowed to run for consecutive terms. There is no limit to how many times a person can run for candidacy if they have not previously served as president.
The incumbent president, in accordance with the constitution, completes their corresponding term on 11 March of the immediate year after the election. Thepresident-elect takes office the same day.
If the president is unable to perform his or her duties, the President's powers are usually temporarily transferred to theminister of the interior under the title of "Vice President". However, this is not a substantive position. Rather, the holder of the position fulfills the duties of the president only for as long as the president is incapacitated or a vacancy occurs. If the president and the minister of the interior are both temporarily unavailable, the next minister of the government, in the order of succession, becomes the vice president. The consent of the Senate is required for the vice president to exercise the duties of the president.
A partial constitutional amendment in 2011 established the order of presidential succession in the order of Minister of the Interior, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of National Defense.[8]
| Part ofa series on Orders of succession |
| Presidencies |
|---|
Names of incumbents as of 2023[update]:
Thepresidential sash, used initially byBernardo O'Higgins, became a symbol of the authority of the first president with the assumption of office by PresidentJosé Joaquín Prieto in 1831. It is composed of three stripes with the colors of the Chilean flag, it is sewn by hand and measured approximately 75 cm (30 in) long and 13 cm (5.1 in) wide.
From the nineteenth century a single sash was maintained that was transferred from president to president until 1915, due to the height differences between the outgoingRamón Barros Luco and the electedJuan Luis Sanfuentes, so a new sash had to be designed. Since that date, each president has had his or her own presidential sash, which is used only in official ceremonies.
TheO'Higgins Pioche, which is considered the symbol of presidential power and is placed at the lower end of the presidential sash, is a star of five ends of about 7 cm (2.8 in) in diameter, enameled in red. It dates back to the medals of the Legion of Merit and remained intact until the coup d'état of 1973, when it disappeared during the bombing of theLa Moneda palace. During the military regime ofAugusto Pinochet a replica of the pioche was created, based on photographs of the original. It is only used together with the presidential sash.
The president of Chile traditionally used an elegant horse drawn "Bandeja"Carriage imported from France by PresidentJosé Manuel Balmaceda for ceremonial events until presidentSalvador Allende, not wanting to project the image of royalty that carriages now confer, used the black 1966Ford Galaxie XL convertible acquired in 1968 for Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Chile as his official vehicle with a normally issued license plate (EL-2801).[9]
Both the carriage and the Galaxie have since been maintained by the state and are now used only for official ceremonies, such as state visits and the national holidays on 21 May and 19 September, and presidential inaugurations which take place on 11 March every four years.[10][11]
.jpg)
.jpg)
.svg)
