Over 14 Million People to Participate in Chile's Next Elections

Chile's Election Service (Servel) Monday reported that over 14 million people have registered to vote in the April 11 election that will decide new subnational authorities and the representatives for the Constitutional Convention. 

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Servel officials noted that 49 percent of the voters are men, while 51 percent are women. Likewise, over 1.2 million people represent Indigenous communities.

As of January 6, a total of 19,245 people registered to contest the elections. The Online Sponsorship System showed that 1,429 people were running for mayor's offices while 81 for regional governor's posts.

The communities of Puente Alto, Maipu, Santiago, La Florida, Viña del Mar, Valparaiso, Antofagasta, Las Condes, Temuco, and San Bernardo recorded the highest number of qualified voters so far.

Servel also noted that 237,618 people filled their applications for Constitutional Convention's posts, 7,543 of whom represent Indigenous communities. 

A historic turnout was seen in last year's plebiscite that was convoked to decide whether or not a new Constitution should be drafted. Figures showed that 78.3 percent of the votes supported the approval option, while 78.9 percent accepted the process through a Constitutional Convention. 

Indigenous people's seats to the Constitutional Convention was a historical demand voiced by social and human rights movements. After a long deadlock on the issue, lawmakers approved 17 posts for Indigenous communities.