CHILE: The Demise of Pinochet's Constitution

Javier Couso looks at the prospects and process for a new Constitution for Chile.

On October 25, 2020, Chile had one of the most consequential electoral events in a generation. That day, almost 80 percent of the voters decided in a referendum to end the rule of the Constitution imposed in 1980 by General Augusto Pinochet’s military regime. The citizens of Chile chose to start a constituent process aimed at elaborating a new, democratically enacted charter. Thanks to this crucial first step, over the next year and a half (until mid-2022), Chile will be engaging in a constitution-building process without precedent in the country’s history.