2009–10 Chilean presidential election

The first round of the Chilean presidential election of 2009–2010 was held on Sunday December 13, 2009. Based on the two-round system, since none of the candidates secured the absolute majority needed to take the presidency outright, a run-off between the two most-voted candidates —center-right Sebastián Piñera and center-left Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle— was held on Sunday, January 17, 2010.[1] Piñera, who won the runoff with about 51.6% of the vote, succeeded Michelle Bachelet on March 11, 2010. Parliamentary elections took place on the same day.

Runoff election

January 17, 2010

Candidate Sebastián Piñera Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle Party National Renewal Christian Democratic Alliance Coalition for Change Concertación Popular vote 3,591,182 3,367,790 Percentage 51.61% 48.39%

Presidential runoff election results map. Blue denotes communes won by Piñera, Orange denotes those won by Frei.

President before election Michelle Bachelet Socialist Elected President Sebastián Piñera National Renewal

Chilean politics is dominated by two main coalitions: the center-left Concert of Parties for Democracy (Concertación de Partidos por la Democracia), composed of the Christian Democrat Party, the Socialist Party, the Party for Democracy, and the Social Democrat Radical Party; and the center-right[2] Alliance for Chile (Alianza por Chile), composed of the Independent Democratic Union and National Renewal. The Concertación selected former president Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle as their candidate, while the Alianza chose former presidential candidate Sebastián Piñera, who is supported by the newly created Coalition for Change electoral group. The far-left Juntos Podemos Más pact selected former Socialist Party member Jorge Arrate as its candidate. Another former Socialist party member, deputy Marco Enríquez-Ominami (MEO), ran as independent.

Summary of candidates

The following four were the official candidates for President:

Candidate	Endorsement	Political spectrum
Jorge Arrate Communist Party of Chile	Juntos Podemos Más New Left[3]	Left
Marco Enríquez-Ominami Independent	New Majority for Chile Broad Social Movement[4]	Center-left
Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle Christian Democrat Party	Concertación Country Force	Center-left
Sebastián Piñera National Renewal	Coalition for Change	Center-right

Coalition for Change candidate

Sebastián Piñera (RN)

Both Alliance for Chile parties —RN and UDI— chose Sebastián Piñera as their candidate for president, now under the banner of a larger electoral pact, the Coalition for Change, which also includes the newly formed party ChileFirst and other minor groups.

Party pre-candidates

Party	Candidate	Remarks
RN	Sebastián Piñera	Piñera participated in Hernán Büchi's 1989 presidential campaign and was later elected to the Senate. He was a potential presidential nominee in 1993, but his chances were ruined by a conflict with Evelyn Matthei that came to be known as Piñeragate. In 1999 he again attempted to be the nominee, but was defeated in the convention by Joaquín Lavín. In 2005 he shook the political scene by jumping into the first round independently of the UDI. Polls show him narrowly beating Frei in a runoff scenario. He was officially proclaimed by RN on August 8, 2009.[5] He submitted his candidacy to the Electoral Service on September 9, 2009.[6]
UDI	Sebastián Piñera	The UDI officially proclaimed Piñera as its candidate on August 22, 2009.[7] Piñera had been proposed as the party's candidate by the UDI's Consejo Directivo in December 2008.[8] Pre-candidates: Evelyn Matthei: She is the daughter of Air Force General Fernando Matthei, a member of the military junta that took power in the 1973 coup. She was a member of National Renewal, but in 1992 was embroiled in a conflict with Sebastián Piñera, ending with her leaving the party and joining the UDI. She has been mentioned as a potential UDI candidate, considering she is among the leading proponents of having the UDI bring its own candidate to the first round. She has said it would be "fun" to compete against Piñera. Longueira said on October 9, 2008 that she would be an excellent candidate. On October 11, 2008, she said she was willing to run for president.[9] She announced her precandidacy on October 14, 2008.[10] Potential candidates: Joaquín Lavín: He earned a master's degree in economics from the University of Chicago. Afterwards, in 1992, Lavín was elected mayor of Las Condes, a stronghold of the right, with 31% of the vote and reelected in 1997 with 78% of the vote. Lavín was the presidential candidate for the UDI-RN coalition Alliance for Chile in the 1999 election. He eventually lost to PS/PPD candidate Ricardo Lagos in a runoff by 200,000 votes. Lavín again represented UDI in the 2005 presidential election, but ended in third place with 23.23% of the vote, due the presence of another right-wing candidate in the race, Sebastián Piñera, who made it to the runoff election with 25.41% of the vote. Pablo Longueira urged him to run for a third time for the presidential elections, but he refused and ended up running for a senate seat in the Valparaíso Region which he lost.[11] Hernán Larraín: He is a senator and former president of the UDI. Longueira said on October 9, 2008 that he would be an excellent candidate. Declined candidacies: Hernán Büchi: A possible candidacy by the 1990 presidential candidate generated buzz within the UDI in June 2007. He has however declined a candidacy. Pablo Longueira: The senator officially launched his candidacy on March 30, 2007. He had announced his plans before the 2005 election took place. He stepped down "momentarily" due to "low party support" on May 3, 2007.[12] Jacqueline van Rysselberghe: The mayor of Concepción was proclaimed, on October 11, 2006, as candidate by five UDI deputies from the Biobío Region. She has refused to campaign for the nomination, however, preferring to concentrate on her 2008 campaign for reelection as mayor. She was reelected as Concepción mayor in October 2008.
CH1	Sebastián Piñera	ChileFirst decided to support Piñera on March 29, 2009 after its leader, senator Fernando Flores, declined to run for president.[13] It officially proclaimed him on August 15, 2009.[14] Declined candidacies: Fernando Flores: The former minister of Salvador Allende and current senator launched a failed presidential bid for the 2005 election. He resigned from the PPD in early 2007 and launched a new party, ChileFirst. On March 29, 2009 ChileFirst decided to support Piñera after Flores declined to run for president.[13]

Concertación candidate

Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle (PDC)

The Concertación selected former president Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle from the Christian Democrat Party as its single candidate for president. The selection process involved a single regional primary on April 5, 2009 in the Maule and O'Higgins regions between Frei and José Antonio Gómez Urrutia from the Social Democrat Radical Party. Frei won with 65% versus 35% for Gómez. Had the percentage difference between both candidates been less than 20%, the selection process would have continued with additional primaries in other regions until May 17. Frei was legally proclaimed as presidential candidate by the PPD on August 1, 2009[15] and by the PDC, PS and PRSD on August 22, 2009.[16] He submitted his candidacy to the Electoral Service on September 12, 2009.[17]

Party pre-candidates

Each Concertación party selected its own pre-candidate for president. Only Frei and Gómez submitted their candidacies before the January 26, 2009 deadline.

Party	Candidate	Remarks
PRSD	José Antonio Gómez Urrutia	He was proclaimed by his party on November 13, 2008. He had announced his pre-candidacy two days earlier.[18]
PDC	Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle	He was proclaimed by his party on December 13, 2008.[19] Other candidates: Pablo Lorenzini: On December 16, 2008, he said he was supporting Frei's candidacy.[20] Marcelo Trivelli: He announced his candidacy on June 10, 2007 during a television interview. Despite his lack of a support base, he declared himself the candidate of "honesty and sincerity" and respect towards the Constitution.[21] Trivelli received heavy criticism from his own party because of his decision to run, and many party members declared it was not the appropriate time for candidacies.[22] Trivelli has embarked on a number of trips around the country in order to create enough support to sustain his candidacy.[23] Declined candidacy: Soledad Alvear: She was constantly mentioned as a potential contender in 2009 ever since she resigned from her candidacy in favor of Bachelet. Her supporters, the alvearistas, controlled most of the PDC institutions and she commanded widespread support in the party, despite the vocal opposition of fellow Senator Adolfo Zaldívar. On December 6, 2007, she was unofficially proclaimed a presidential candidate by Christian Democrat deputy Pablo Lorenzini.[24] She declared herself a candidate on June 23, 2008 during a television interview.[25] On October 28, 2008, she stepped out of the race for the presidency and resigned as PDC president after disappointing results in the municipal elections held two days earlier.
PS	Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle	The PS selected Frei as its candidate on January 17, 2009. He was the only person to submit a candidacy to the PS presidential convention. Declined candidacies: José Miguel Insulza: He declared himself a candidate on December 12, 2008.[26] He, however, declined his candidacy on January 5, 2009, and gave his support to Frei. Ricardo Lagos: His government was highly popular and his term ended with approval ratings around 60-70%. Various supporters urged him to run again in 2009. However, his popularity has lately seen a sharp fall due to the catastrophic new transport system (Transantiago), planned under his presidency. Lagos has declared all doors are open to him, but has refused to confirm whether he will participate. In March 2008, he said it was unbecoming as a former head of state to participate in a primary and would refuse to do so.[27] On November 8, 2008, he was proclaimed unanimously by the PPD's National Directive as its candidate, but Lagos never accepted the nomination.[28] On December 2, 2008, the PPD officially proclaimed Lagos as its candidate for the presidency.[29] However, two days later, Lagos ruled out running for the presidency, stating in a press conference "I am not, nor will I be, a presidential candidate".[30]
PPD	Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle	The PPD selected Frei as its candidate on January 24, 2009, with 296 votes from the party's National Council, against seven for PRSD candidate José Antonio Gómez Urrutia.[31] Other candidates: Sergio Bitar: In a May 4, 2007 interview with La Tercera, he said he was willing to be his party's presidential nominee if there was enough support.[32] On November 7, 2008 he said that he is "without a doubt" willing to compete eventually for the presidency, but only if Ricardo Lagos's candidacy does not prosper.[33] He declined his candidacy on November 10, 2008, following Lagos's proclamation by his party.[34] Now that Lagos is out of the race, he may attempt a second run. Nicolás Eyzaguirre: He has said that he could participate if Lagos declines to, but he remained silent after Lagos declined his candidacy. Ricardo Lagos: On December 4, 2008 he ruled out running for the presidency, stating in a press conference "I am not, nor will I be, a presidential candidate".[30]
Independent candidates	None	Failed candidacies: Marco Enríquez-Ominami: On December 15, 2008, he announced he was available to compete with Insulza in a Socialist Party primary.[35] He, however, did not submit his candidacy to the PS presidential convention. On January 9, 2009, he agreed to compete in the Concertación primaries as independent after gaining the support of some council people and legislators.[36]

Primary results

The primary was carried out on April 5, 2009 in the Maule and O'Higgins regions. Frei became the single Concertación candidate by beating Gómez by a 20-point lead, cancelling the need for further regional primaries.

Final results.[37]

Candidate	Party	Votes	%	Result
Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle	DC	40,140	64.90	Concertación candidate
José Antonio Gómez Urrutia	PRSD	21,703	35.09
Valid votes		61,843	100
Null votes		222	0.35
Blank votes		317	0.50
Total votes		62,382	100

Juntos Podemos candidate

Jorge Arrate (Communist Party of Chile)

The Juntos Podemos Más coalition of far-left parties selected former Socialist Party member Jorge Arrate as its sole candidate for president on April 25, 2009. He was officially proclaimed as candidate on April 26, 2009.[38] In July 2009, after his candidacy lost the support of the Humanist Party, he became a member of the Communist Party in order to comply with the law and run for president. He submitted his candidacy to the Electoral Service on September 9, 2009.[39]

Party pre-candidates

Party	Candidate	Remarks
PCCh	Guillermo Teillier	Teillier launched his candidacy on September 26, 2008. He said he is willing to step down in order to put forward a single candidate for the Juntos Podemos coalition of left-parties.[40] In November 2008 he said he would be willing to participate in a primary between him, Hirsch and Alejandro Navarro, who had quit the Socialist Party.[41] Teillier stepped down as Juntos Podemos pre-candidate on April 25, 2009, giving his support to Jorge Arrate, saying he was the right person according to the country's political moment.
PH	Tomás Hirsch	Hirsch was among the founders of the Humanist Party and vied unsuccessfully for seats in the Chamber of Deputies as part of the Concertación. In 1993, the PH broke off from the coalition. In 1999 he was the Humanist presidential candidate, but lost in the first round. In 2005, he again participated in the presidential campaign, now with the additional support of the communists. He garnered a little over 5% of the vote. In an interview with Biobío Radio on September 1, 2007, Hirsch criticized the Concertación and the Alianza and declared that he would he "happy to be a candidate" if the members of his coalition agree.[42] On June 7, 2008 he announced he intended to run for the presidency for the third time as the PH candidate, under the Juntos Podemos umbrella.[43]
Independent (Socialista-allendista)	Jorge Arrate	Arrate is a member of the more leftist faction of the PS and had been mentioned as a potential candidate in an alliance of this faction and the Juntos Podemos Más pact. He formally announced his candidacy on January 27, 2008, pressured by a group of socialists opposed to the Socialist Party leadership.[44] On November 20, 2008, Arrate was proclaimed as candidate by a group of Socialist Party Central Committee members.[45] Arrate resigned from the PS on January 14, 2009.[46] He was proclaimed as presidential candidate on January 18, 2009 by a group of Socialist Party members, the so-called "socialistas-allendistas.[47]

Primary results

The election to define the sole Juntos Podemos candidate was carried out on April 25, 2009 in Santiago. Arrate beat Hirsch and became the single Juntos Podemos candidate.

Final results.[48]

Candidate	Party	Votes	%	Result
Jorge Arrate	Ind.	1,145	77.57	Juntos Podemos candidate
Tomás Hirsch	PH	331	22.42
Valid votes		1,476	100
Null votes		6	0.40
Blank votes		2	0.13
Total votes		1,484	100

Independent candidate

Marco Enríquez-Ominami (Ind.)

On December 15, 2008, he announced he was available to compete with Insulza in a Socialist Party primary.[35] He, however, did not submit his candidacy to the PS presidential convention. On January 9, 2009, he agreed to compete in the Concertación primaries as independent after gaining the support of some council people and legislators.[36] He did not submit his candidacy, however. Instead he is running as an independent and as of August, 2009, polling above 20% and thus threatening to displace one of the coalition-backed candidates in the expected run-off election. He was proclaimed candidate by the Humanist and Ecologist parties plus several other leftist groups under the banner of a new electoral pact, a New Majority for Chile, on September 13, 2009.[49] He submitted his candidacy to the Electoral Service on September 10, 2009.[50]

Unsuccessful candidacies

• Eduardo Artés (PC (AP)): He was proclaimed as a Juntos Podemos Más pre-candidate by the Communist Party (Proletarian Action) on December 7, 2007.[51] However, on July 26, 2008, the PC (AP) left the Juntos Podemos Más pact, accusing them of abandoning their founding principles in light of the pact's electoral deal with the Concertación for the upcoming October municipal elections.[52] He quit his candidacy in July 2009. He said his candidacy was just an opportunity to present new ideas to the country, as going through with the candidacy would be too economically onerous.[53]
• Leonardo Farkas (Ind.): A mining businessman.[54] On December 5, 2008, he announced he was giving up his presidential candidacy.[55]
• Pamela Jiles (Ind.): Journalist and television presenter. She announced her candidacy in February 2009 through a column in The Clinic magazine.[56] On September 4, 2009 she stepped out of the race in support of Navarro.[57] In the same election, she unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the lower chamber of Congress.
• Luis Molina Vega (Ind.)[58] A civil engineer from Tomé. Molina stepped out of the race in July 2009, due to low support.[59]
• Alejandro Navarro (MAS): Navarro used to characterize himself as a leader in the "dissident" faction of the Socialist Party, which harshly criticized what they called the "neoliberal" economic model, supporting instead Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro. Despite his involvement in a scandal due to his participation in a protest organized by the Unitary Workers Central where he attacked a policeman, with the possibility of being expelled from the Senate being considered, Navarro declared himself to be a presidential candidate in 2008. In November 2008, he quit the Socialist Party to form a new party called Broad Social Movement (MAS). He said his candidacy was necessary to "stop Piñera from winning in the first round", and still considered himself a Socialist.[60] The MAS party proclaimed him its candidate on November 11, 2008; the party, however, was still open to stage a primary between all leftist candidates that were not part of the Concertación.[61] Navarro has proposed to hold the primary in April 2009.[62] On May 5, 2009 Navarro said he would step out of the race and support Arrate if polls released from then to September show the Juntos Podemos Más candidate having an advantage of seven points over him. He didn't rule out Arrate then supporting Enríquez-Ominami, if his candidacy was the strongest.[63] Navarro was proclaimed as the official MAS candidate on July 25, 2009 with the support of other minor left groups.[64] He submitted his candidacy to the Electoral Service on September 14, 2009.[65] On September 22, 2009 Navarro withdrew his candidacy and gave his support to Enríquez-Ominami.[66]
• Adolfo Zaldívar (PRI): The former president of the Christian Democratic Party and a Senator at the time of his nomination, lost the last internal PDC primary to Alvear. He is the brother of senator and former Interior Minister Andrés Zaldívar. He was expelled from the PDC in December 2007, later becoming part of the Regionalist Party of the Independents (PRI). He announced his intention to run as president representing that party, and was proclaimed so on April 26, 2009.[67] This decision was ratified on August 29, 2009.[68] He stepped out of the race on September 14, 2009, just hours before the deadline for submission.[69]

Opinion polls

List of opinion polls released within a year of the election. Only responses from persons registered to vote are shown.

Legend
—	Not on the list
	Wins election
	May win election
	Runoff
	May go to a runoff

First-round scenarios

Publisher	Field date	Date published	Arrate	MEO	Frei	Piñera	Other	DK/NR	Comments
CEP	November 19-December 11, 2008	December 30, 2008	—	—	31	41	7	21	Source
La Segunda	December 18, 2008	December 19, 2008	—	—	36	46	6	12	Source
La Segunda	April 6, 2009	April 7, 2009	1	4	33	43	7	12	Source
La Tercera	April 6–7, 2009	April 12, 2009	—	3	33	42	7	15	Source
Imaginacción	April 4–26, 2009	May 11, 2009	—	10.5	32.4	38.3	7.6	11.2	Source
TNS Time	April 1–30, 2009	May 5, 2009	—	14	29	36	7	14	Source
La Tercera	April 21–23, 2009	April 26, 2009	—	10	28	35	7	20	Source
Ipsos	N/A	April N/A, 2009	0.3	5.1	25.4	43.3	0	25.9	Source
La Segunda	May 14, 2009	May 15, 2009	1	14	27	42	4	12	Source
Imaginacción	May 2–30, 2009	June 11, 2009	0.5	20.9	29.9	34.9	5.6	8.2	Source
TNS Time	May 4–30, 2009	June 2, 2009	1	24	25	33	3	14	Source
CEP	May 14-June 3, 2009	June 18, 2009	1	14	30	34	3	19	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	May 14-June 3, 2009	June 18, 2009	1	13	30	37	3	16	Ballot box vote. (Source)
Ipsos	May 18-June 1, 2009	June 9, 2009	1.4	20.6	24.9	34.4	2.5	16.2	Source
Imaginacción	June 1–30, 2009	July 14, 2009	2.3	21.5	28.2	35.9	2.7	9.4	Source
Mori	June 27-July 9, 2009	July 23, 2009	1	13	21	43	3	19	Source
La Segunda	July 8, 2009	July 10, 2009	2	15	27	38	3	15	Source
Imaginacción	July 1–31, 2009	August 12, 2009	3.5	21.9	26.7	36.7	1.7	9.5	Source
La Tercera	July 20–22, 2009	July 26, 2009	2	21	25	30	2	20	Source
CERC	July 17-August 3, 2009	August 12, 2009	1	14	25	39	1	20	Source
Ipsos	July 24-August 6, 2009	August 19, 2009	1.5	20.6	22.9	35.6	2.1	17.3	Source
Direct Media	August 5–6, 2009	August 12, 2009	1.63	15.48	21.28	34.43	1.32	25.86	Source
La Segunda	August 12, 2009	August 14, 2009	1	20	24	39	1	15	Source
Imaginacción	August 1–29, 2009	September 14, 2009	2.3	20.5	28.2	37.8	2.4	10.3	Source
CEP	July 30-August 20, 2009	September 3, 2009	1	16	30	35	2	16	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	July 30-August 20, 2009	September 3, 2009	1	17	28	37	2	15	Ballot box vote. (Source)
Imaginacción	September 1–30, 2009	October 14, 2009	4.5	20.4	25.7	38.4	1.7	9.3	Source
La Segunda	September 24, 2009	September 25, 2009	4	19	23	39	0	15	Source
Ipsos	September 16-October 6, 2009	October 21, 2009	3.7	17.8	27.2	36.7	0.3	14.3	Source
UDP	September 21-October 13, 2009	October 28, 2009	4.1	17.3	23.7	30.3	0.6	24.0	Source
La Tercera	October 5–8, 2009	October 10, 2009	6	24	20	39	0	11	Source
CERC	October 2–13, 2009	October 20, 2009	3	20	20	41	0	16	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	October 10–12, 2009	October 18, 2009	4.9	21.5	22.8	38.0	0	12.7	Source
Giro País-Subjetiva	October 9–20, 2009	October 31, 2009	4.7	19.3	28.6	36.9	0	10.5	Source
Imaginacción	October 1–31, 2009	November 16, 2009	6.4	22.3	27.0	37.8	0	6.5	Source
CEP	October 8–30, 2009	November 11, 2009	4	17	26	35	0	18	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	October 8–30, 2009	November 11, 2009	5	19	26	36	0	14	Ballot box vote. (Source)
El Mercurio-Opina	November 3–4, 2009	November 7, 2009	6.1	20.4	21.5	38.0	0	14.0	Ballot box vote. (Source)
La Segunda	November 18, 2009	November 20, 2009	7	20	24	38	0	11	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	December 5–6, 2009	December 9, 2009	6.8	19.5	22.6	38.2	0	12.9	Ballot box vote. (Source)

DK/NR: Don't know / No response.

Runoff scenarios

Frei vs. Piñera

Publisher	Field date	Date published	Frei	Piñera	DK/NR	Comments
CEP	November 19-December 11, 2008	December 30, 2008	34	44	22	Source
Imaginacción	December 6–28, 2008	January 8, 2009	42.5	44.8	12.7	Source
La Segunda-UDD	December 18, 2008	December 19, 2008	38	46	16	Source
TNS Time	January N/A, 2009	January 31, 2009 (unverified)	40	45	15	Source
Imaginacción	January 3–31, 2009	February 6, 2009	42.3	45.6	12.1	Source
TNS Time	February 2–26, 2009	March 10, 2009 (unverified)	38	43	19	Source
Imaginacción	February 7–28, 2009	March 4, 2009	43.4	46.8	9.8	Source
La Segunda-UDD	March 5, 2009	March 6, 2009	37	46	17	Source
TNS Time	March 2–30, 2009	March 31, 2009	41	39	20	Source
Imaginacción	March 2–31, 2009	April 8, 2009	44.3	44.7	11.0	Source
La Segunda-UDD	April 6, 2009	April 7, 2009	39	45	16	Source
La Tercera	April 6–7, 2009	April 12, 2009	40	46	14	Source
Imaginacción	April 4–26, 2009	May 11, 2009	43.2	43.8	13.0	Source
TNS Time	April 1–30, 2009	May 5, 2009	41	43	16	Source
CERC	April 13–27, 2009	May 14, 2009	33	47	20	Source
La Tercera	April 21–23, 2009	April 26, 2009	39	43	18	Source
Giro País-Subjetiva	April 30-May 10, 2009	May 16, 2009	40.8	37.9	21.3	Source
La Segunda-UDD	May 14, 2009	May 15, 2009	34	44	22	Source
Imaginacción	May 2–30, 2009	June 11, 2009	43.1	44.2	12.7	Source
TNS Time	May 4–30, 2009	June 2, 2009	38	43	19	Source
CEP	May 14-June 3, 2009	June 18, 2009	39	39	22	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	May 14-June 3, 2009	June 18, 2009	39	41	20	Ballot box vote. (Source)
Ipsos	May 18-June 1, 2009	June 9, 2009	39.6	42.3	18.1	Source
Imaginacción	June 1–30, 2009	July 14, 2009	41.9	43.3	14.8	Source
MORI	June 27-July 9, 2009	July 23, 2009	30	46	24	Source
La Segunda-UDD	July 8, 2009	July 10, 2009	39	43	18	Source
Imaginacción	July 1–31, 2009	August 12, 2009	42.8	44.5	12.7	Source
CERC	July 17-August 3, 2009	August 12, 2009	36	44	20	Source
Ipsos	July 24-August 6, 2009	August 19, 2009	38.1	45.5	16.4	Source
Direct Media	August 5–6, 2009	August 12, 2009	30.97	40.89	28.14	Source
CEP	July 30-August 20, 2009	September 3, 2009	39	39	22	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	July 30-August 20, 2009	September 3, 2009	39	42	19	Ballot box vote. (Source)
La Segunda-UDD	August 12, 2009	August 14, 2009	36	45	19	Source
Imaginacción	August 1–29, 2009	September 14, 2009	42.6	44.6	12.8	Source
Imaginacción	September 1–30, 2009	October 14, 2009	42.2	45.2	12.6	Source
La Segunda-UDD	September 24, 2009	September 25, 2009	38	47	15	Source
Ipsos	September 16-October 6, 2009	October 21, 2009	39.6	44.5	15.9	Source
UDP	September 21-October 13, 2009	October 28, 2009	36.3	35.5	28.2	Source
La Tercera	October 5–8, 2009	October 10, 2009	39	48	13	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	October 10–12, 2009	October 18, 2009	38.1	42.5	19.4	Ballot box vote. (Source)
Giro País-Subjetiva	October 9–20, 2009	October 31, 2009	42.0	42.2	15.8	Source
Imaginacción	October 1–31, 2009	November 16, 2009	42.1	45.8	12.1	Source
CEP	October 8–30, 2009	November 11, 2009	36	40	24	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	October 8–30, 2009	November 11, 2009	37	43	20	Ballot box vote. (Source)
El Mercurio-Opina	November 3–4, 2009	November 7, 2009	36.8	42.7	20.5	Ballot box vote. (Source)
La Segunda-UDD	November 18, 2009	November 20, 2009	37	47	16	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	December 5–6, 2009	December 9, 2009	34.4	42.5	23.1	Ballot box vote. (Source)
El Mercurio-Opina	December 15–17, 2009	December 19, 2009	39.7	46.2	14.1	Ballot box vote. (Source)
La Segunda-UDD	December 17, 2009	December 18, 2009	43	48	9	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	January 5–7, 2010	January 9, 2010	41.0	46.1	12.9	Ballot box vote. (Source)

DK/NR: Don't know / No response.

Enríquez-Ominami vs. Piñera

Publisher	Field date	Date published	MEO	Piñera	DK/NR	Comments
La Segunda-UDD	May 14, 2009	May 15, 2009	37	45	18	Source
MORI	June 27-July 9, 2009	July 23, 2009	23	47	30	Source
La Segunda-UDD	July 8, 2009	July 10, 2009	36	45	19	Source
La Tercera	July 20–22, 2009	July 26, 2009	22	49	29	Source
CERC	July 17-August 3, 2009	August 12, 2009	29	44	27	Source
Ipsos	July 24-August 6, 2009	August 19, 2009	40.3	43.6	16.1	Source
Direct Media	August 5–6, 2009	August 12, 2009	31.29	38.88	29.83	Source
CEP	July 30-August 20, 2009	September 3, 2009	33	40	27	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	July 30-August 20, 2009	September 3, 2009	34	44	22	Ballot box vote. (Source)
La Segunda-UDD	August 12, 2009	August 14, 2009	37	45	18	Source
Imaginacción	September 1–30, 2009	October 14, 2009	39.3	45.9	14.8	Source
La Segunda-UDD	September 24, 2009	September 25, 2009	40	47	13	Source
Ipsos	September 16-October 6, 2009	October 21, 2009	42.3	42.8	14.9	Source
UDP	September 21-October 13, 2009	October 28, 2009	36.4	34.0	29.6	Source
La Tercera	October 5–8, 2009	October 10, 2009	43	44	13	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	October 10–12, 2009	October 18, 2009	40.3	42.9	16.8	Ballot-box vote. (Source)
Giro País-Subjetiva	October 9–20, 2009	October 31, 2009	41.1	40.2	18.7	Source
Imaginacción	October 1–31, 2009	November 16, 2009	42.7	43.4	13.9	Source
CEP	October 8–30, 2009	November 11, 2009	35	37	28	Response to a questionnaire. (Source)
CEP	October 8–30, 2009	November 11, 2009	37	40	23	Ballot box vote. (Source)
El Mercurio-Opina	November 3–4, 2009	November 7, 2009	37.7	41.9	20.4	Ballot-box vote. (Source)
La Segunda-UDD	November 18, 2009	November 20, 2009	40	44	16	Source
El Mercurio-Opina	December 5–6, 2009	December 9, 2009	34.8	40.7	24.5	Ballot-box vote. (Source)

DK/NR: Don't know / No response.

Arrate vs. Piñera

Publisher	Field date	Date published	Arrate	Piñera	DK/NR	Comments
La Tercera	October 5–8, 2009	October 10, 2009	33	51	16	Source

DK/NR: Don't know / No response.

Enríquez-Ominami vs. Frei

Publisher	Field date	Date published	MEO	Frei	DK/NR	Comments
UDP	September 21-October 13, 2009	October 28, 2009	32.3	31.9	35.8	Source

DK/NR: Don't know / No response.

Debates

The four candidates attend the second debate organized by Archi.

The first debate was organized by TVN and took place in Studio #9 at the station's main headquarters in Santiago. It was broadcast live on September 23, 2009 at 10:40 p.m and included all four candidates. A poll published by Ipsos the following day, showed that Enríquez-Ominami, Arrate and Piñera were each considered to have had the best performance over the rest, with 29-30% of support, while Frei's showing only had the support of 9%. Frei was seen by 45% as the worst performer, followed by Piñera (37%), Arrate (10%) and Enríquez-Ominami (5%).[70] Another poll by La Segunda found 23% thought Piñera had won the debate, followed by Arrate (21%), Enríquez-Ominami (15%) and Frei (9%). 31% thought none had won the debate.[71]

The second debate was organized by Archi (Radio Broadcasters Association) and Mayor University. It took place at 8:30 AM on October 9, 2009. It was a radio-only debate, though some local 24-hour news channels broadcast live some parts of it. A poll carried out by Mayor University showed Piñera had won the debate by 41%, followed by Enríquez-Ominami (22%), Arrate (19%) and Frei Ruiz-Tagle (17%).[72]

The four candidates at the ANP debate.

There was an online debate on November 4, organized by Terra and Radio Cooperativa. Only Arrate was present after the other three candidates declined to attend. Frei and Piñera had confirmed their presence in May, while Enríquez-Ominami backed down on the same day of the debate.

A debate to discuss regional issues took place on November 6 at 9 AM in Talca's casino. It was organized by the National Press Association (ANP) and was attended by all four candidates.

A fifth debate took place on November 9 at Canal 13's studios in Santiago, which was broadcast live at 10 PM. All four candidates were present. This debate was notable because the candidates were able to ask questions to one another and freely talk to each other.

The last debate was organized by the National Television Association (Anatel) and broadcast live on November 16 at 10 PM by all terrestrial television stations. All candidates attended. There was no audience present.

First round results

Candidate Eduardo Frei casting his ballot in La Unión on December 13, 2009.

Ballots of the first round of the presidential election (in yellow) and the parliamentary election (in white).

Official and final results.[73]

Ballot number	Candidate	Party/ Coalition	Votes	%	Result
1	Jorge Arrate Mac-Niven	PCCh/JPM	433,195	6.21
2	Marco Enríquez-Ominami Gumucio	Independent	1,405,124	20.14
3	Sebastián Piñera Echenique	RN/CFC	3,074,164	44.06	Runoff
4	Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle	PDC/CPD	2,065,061	29.60	Runoff
	Total valid votes		6,977,544	100.00
	Null votes		200,420	2.76
	Blank votes		86,172	1.19
	Total votes		7,264,136	100.00
	Total voters enrolled		8,285,186	87.68% turnout
	Voting age population		12,277,915	67.48% registered

Note: There are 34,348 ballot boxes in the country in 34,325 polling places (23 polling places are mixed-sex, with separate ballot boxes for men and women.)

Runoff election

Campaign

On December 20, 2009, the Juntos Podemos Más coalition gave his support to Eduardo Frei's candidacy, after the former president agreed to include a number of policies into his government program.[74] Two days later, Jorge Arrate also gave his full support to Frei.[75] On January 13, 2010 Enríquez-Ominami held a press conference to state he would vote for Frei, although he did not say his name.[76] He had previously said that voting for Piñera would be a regression and voting for Frei would not be an advancement.

Debates

There was a single debate between the two candidates. It was organized by Anatel and broadcast at 10 PM by all terrestrial television stations on January 11, 2010.

Results

Ballot of the runoff

Official and final results.[77]

Ballot number	Candidate	Party/ Coalition	Votes	%	Result
3	Sebastián Piñera Echenique	RN/CFC	3,591,182	51.61	President
4	Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle	PDC/CPD	3,367,790	48.39
	Total valid votes		6,958,972	100.00
	Null votes		189,490	2.63
	Blank votes		54,909	0.76
	Total votes		7,203,371	100.00
	Total voters enrolled		8,285,186	86.94% turnout
	Voting age population		12,277,915	67.48% registered

Note: There are 34,348 ballot boxes in the country in 34,325 polling places (23 polling places are mixed-sex, with separate ballot boxes for men and women.)

Timeline

• September 13, 2009: Deadline to enroll to vote in the upcoming elections.
• September 14, 2009: Deadline to register candidacies at the Electoral Service (Servel).
• September 14, 2009: Electoral campaign begins.
• October 5, 2009: Draw supervised by Servel to assign a ballot number to each candidate.
• November 13, 2009: Electoral advertisement period starts.
• December 10, 2009: Electoral advertisement period ends.
• December 13, 2009: Election day. Electoral campaigning ends.
• December 13, 2009: First preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Minister at 6:30 p.m. local time (9:30 p.m. UTC), including 4,342 out of 34,348 ballot boxes (12.64%).
• December 13, 2009: Second preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Minister at 8:03 p.m. local time (11:03 p.m. UTC), including 20,595 ballot boxes (59.96%).
• December 13, 2009: Third preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Minister at 10:56 p.m. local time (1:56 a.m. UTC), including 33,756 ballot boxes (98.28%).
• December 14, 2009: Fourth and final preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Minister at 11:05 a.m. local time (2:05 p.m. UTC), including 34,133 ballot boxes (99.37%).
• December 21, 2009: The Electoral Service (Servel) publishes preliminary results based on the examination of election certificates (actas de escrutinio) by the Tellers' Colleges (Colegios Escrutadores) meeting on December 14, 2009, including 34,263 out of 34,348 ballot boxes (99.75%).
• December 29, 2009: The Tricel publishes the final results of the first round election on the Official Gazette.
• January 3, 2009: Electoral advertisement period for runoff election starts.
• January 7, 2009: Ballot number is assigned to each candidate according to their position in the first draw.
• January 14, 2009: Electoral advertisement period ends.
• January 17, 2010: Date of presidential run-off. Electoral campaigning ends.
• January 17, 2010: First preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Ministry at 6:00 p.m. local time (9:00 p.m. UTC), including results from 20,711 out of 34,348 ballot boxes (60.30%).
• January 17, 2010: Eduardo Frei concedes the election to Sebastián Piñera at 6:44 p.m. local time (9:44 p.m. UTC).
• January 17, 2010: Second preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Ministry at 7:40 p.m. local time (10:40 p.m. UTC), including results from 34,056 ballot boxes (99.15%).
• January 18, 2010: Third and final preliminary results are announced by the Deputy Interior Ministry at 11:00 a.m. local time (2:00 p.m. UTC), including results from 34,252 ballot boxes (99.72%).
• January 29, 2010: The Election Qualifying Court (Tricel) officially proclaims PIñera as President-elect.
• January 30, 2010: The Tricel publishes the Act of Proclamation on the Official Gazette.
• February 3, 2010: The Tricel publishes the final results of the runoff election on its website.

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77. Tricel

External links

• Results down to communal level (Interior Ministry)
• Results from Election Counting Colleges (Electoral Service)
• Results by ballot box (Election Qualifying Court)