Chile is a stable democracy that has experienced a significant expansion of political rights and civil liberties since the return of civilian rule in 1990. Ongoing concerns include corruption and unrest linked to land disputes with Indigenous Mapuche people.

• In October, Chile conducted its first regional and municipal elections under a 2022 law that instituted mandatory voting. The balloting also marked the first time that 16 regional governors and 302 regional council members were elected simultaneously. At the municipal level, mayors and council members were chosen for 345 cities and towns. The center-right opposition coalition Chile Vamos took the largest share of seats, though the losses sustained by leftist President Gabriel Boric’s coalition were not seen as a major defeat, and the far right’s performance fell short of expectations.
• Separately in October, the country’s top public security official, Undersecretary of the Interior Manuel Monsalve, resigned as prosecutors investigated allegations that he had raped a staff member. President Boric’s government was criticized for failing to remove Monsalve as soon as the allegations came to light. Monsalve was arrested in November.
• In August, prominent lawyer Luis Hermosilla was arrested in connection with a scandal that emerged in November 2023, when a media outlet released audio recordings in which he allegedly discussed bribing public officials to resolve cases. Hermosilla had connections to a number of judicial, regulatory, and political leaders, particularly individuals associated with Chile Vamos. In September, the Supreme Court suspended Justice Ángela Vivanco after she was implicated in the scandal, and multiple investigations were ongoing at year’s end.
• General Ricardo Yáñez resigned in September as director of the Carabineros, Chile’s national police force, in order to face criminal charges for his alleged role in widespread and excessive police violence against protesters in 2019. As part of a broader security-sector reform effort undertaken in response to that violence, Congress granted final approval in December to legislation that would establish a new Ministry of Public Security.

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For additional background information, see last year’s full report.