Chile's presidential election will go to a run-off vote in December between a Communist Party and a far-right candidate, after a first round on Sunday produced no outright winner.
The election campaign was dominated by crime and immigration, as the flow of people into the country has recently grown, while candidates pledged to fight foreign gangs like Venezuela's Tren de Aragua.
The Communist Party's Jeannette Jara, from the governing coalition, narrowly won the first round, followed closely by far-right rival José Antonio Kast.
The result is expected to give a boost to Kast, as Jara was the only left-wing candidate running against several right-wing candidates, effectively splitting the right-wing vote.
In the 14 December run-off, voters will have to coalesce around one of these two candidates.
Kast is expected to pick up votes from other candidates who did not make the final two, including the centre-right Senator Evelyn Matthei and the radical libertarian Congressman Johannes Kaiser.
If he wins, it would make Chile the latest country in Latin America to shift to the right.
Kast is a conservative lawyer and former congressman who lost the 2021 election's run-off to President Gabriel Boric. This is his third time running for president.
The father of nine has promoted a tough crackdown on immigration, including a Trump-style border wall. He opposes abortion even in cases of rape, has criticized environmental and indigenous activism, and wants to shrink the state.
His brother was a minister during Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship and his father was a member of the Nazi party.
Kast said on election night that Chile needed to avoid continuity of a very bad government - perhaps the worst government in the democratic history of Chile.
Jara, a member of the Communist Party, is seen by many as centre-left in practice. She was a minister in Boric's government and her platform includes pledging to increase production of lithium, a metal vital for electronics, raising the minimum wage, building new prisons, and deploying the army to protect Chile's borders.
As results were coming through, she said: Democracy in our country must be taken care of and valued. And it costs us a lot to recover it, today it is at risk.
Both candidates have emphasized their pledges on crime and immigration as organized crime and kidnappings have been on the rise in the country.
Chile's foreign population has grown significantly since 2017, with over 1.9 million foreigners living in the country, up more than 46% from 2018. Official estimates suggest at least 330,000 are undocumented migrants, many from Venezuela.
Kast has blamed rising crime on immigration, though studies indicate that foreign-born individuals commit fewer crimes on average than Chileans.
Chile, known for its relative prosperity and safety compared to some other Latin American nations, is an attractive destination for migrants, including those returning from the US after stricter immigration policies.
Kast has promised to build barriers along Chile's northern border and to deport undocumented migrants. He also advocates for new maximum-security prisons, similar to those in El Salvador.
Jara plans to build new prisons and expel foreigners convicted of drug trafficking.
This election marked the first time that all eligible voters were automatically registered and voting was made compulsory in Chile.
