Socialist Michelle Bachelet handily won a first round of Chile's presidential race Sunday, with voters putting her on track to replace the country's conservative leader following a runoff in December.
Camila Vallejo, who helped spearhead Chile's student uprising in 2011,has been elected to Congres
Chile holds a presidential election on Sunday and both frontrunners are women - the socialist Michelle Bachelet and her right-wing rival Evelyn Matthei.
Chileans will vote for their next president on November 17. Ten candidates will compete in the election - three of them are women (30%).
Chilean presidential candidate for the ruling party Evelyn Matthei was the target of her competitors’ criticism during a televised debate in which she brushed aside hopefuls’ aspirations arguing that it was obvious that the race was between her and Michelle Bachelet, who did not participate.
One of them is the privatized education system, the subject of regular student protests, which former president (2006/2010) and currently running for another four years next November, Michelle Bachelet has pledged to reform.
“There’s something sexist about saying that the candidates are two women.
Their history is the history of Chile. Michelle Bachelet and Evelyn Matthei were childhood friends whose fathers became top generals on opposite sides of the country's deep political divide.