Chile’s Franco Parisi Overtakes Matthei in Poll, Pitches Austerity Plan

Franco Parisi, the populist economist leading Chile’s Partido de la Gente, has moved into third place in the presidential race, according to a Cadem survey published on 4 August. The poll puts Labour Minister Jeannette Jara in front, followed by right-wing contender José Antonio Kast, while former Santiago mayor Evelyn Matthei slips to fourth, deepening uncertainty within her coalition. In back-to-back television interviews, Parisi laid out an austerity-minded economic platform that contrasts sharply with rivals he describes as “extremely spendthrift.” He said a Parisi administration would freeze budget execution from August 2026, trim the number of ministries and cap top public-sector salaries at 5 million pesos a month. Laurence Golborne, a former mines minister, is his preferred choice for the finance post. Parisi also pledged to cut the headline corporate tax rate to 22–23 percent, reinstate the FUT deferred-tax mechanism and reimburse the 19 percent value-added tax on medicines and basic food items. Personal income tax brackets would remain untouched. On pensions, he advocated greater competition among private managers, endorsed a temporary ‘autopréstamo’ against savings and said fund withdrawals should be allowed only for home purchases.