All in heart, the supporters of the “no” to the new constitution sang the national anthem of Chile, Sunday, September 4 in the streets of the capital Santiago. Juan Carlos, lawyer, came to celebrate the victory of the “Rechazo” (rejection) with his wife: “A lot of people were scared and didn’t dare say what their vote would be. No one had expected that Rechazo would be so massive at the polls.” According to him, for once, the whole country expressed itself during this referendum.
In this compulsory ballot – which is not traditionally the case in Chile – citizens had to approve or reject a set of laws intended to replace the constitution hitherto in force and which had been written under the Pinochet dictatorship in 1980. Of the 15 million voters, 13 million voted: a historic turnout. The “Rechazo”, the rejection of the reform project, largely won with 61.9% of the vote.
According to Juan Carlos, for once, the whole country expressed itself during this referendum: “I am very moved because it is the regions that have spoken. They have always been relegated to the background but finally they were able to express themselves.”
“Elections have been won mainly in Santiago for a long time, today all of Chile is winning!”
Juan Carlos, supporter of the “no”at franceinfo
Paula, who also came to celebrate the victory of the “no”, was not convinced by the new constitution but she is not against the principle of reforming the current text: “In my opinion, the current constitution is not bad, but it creates divisions and if we want to have a united country, the best option would be to change it, while considering the culture of our country. Because the project of new constitution did not represent us in any way”.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric delivered a speech after the announcement of the results, calling on all political forces in the country to come together on Monday to launch a new constitutional process. This project for a new constitution was launched after the violent popular uprising of 2019 demanding more social justice. The current constitution, drafted under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990), is still, despite several successive reforms, considered as a brake on any fundamental social reform.