On Sunday, Chileans rejected a new constitution that would have shifted the country to the right, potentially ending a turbulent four-year process to replace their national charter with little to show for it. With 77 percent of the votes counted, more than 55 percent voted to reject the proposed text.
It is the second time in 16 months that Chile has dismissed a proposed constitution, illustrating the nation’s deep divide over the rules and principles governing the country. The debate began in 2019 after intense protests prompted a referendum in which citizens voted to scrap the existing constitution adopted during the military dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.
After failing to reach an agreement on a new text, the nation will likely continue with the current constitution that people had voted to replace. Michelle Bachelet, a leftist former Chilean president, expressed her disappointment, saying “Nobody will try to do a third version of this process.”
Chileans have twice elected mainly political outsiders to constitutional assemblies to draft proposed charters. However, both bodies created long, complicated constitutions that were heavily influenced by the political side controlling the assembly. Each proposed constitution has sparked fierce opposition and confusion due to complex and oftentimes contradictory information.
Sunday’s result was a bitter outcome to a process initially hailed as a paragon for democratic participation. This shows the difficulty of democracy, particularly in the internet age. The rejection represents the 12th and 13th times that a country has dismissed a full constitutional referendum in 181 such votes since 1789.
The rejection of the proposed constitution is a victory for President Gabriel Boric, who will now be able to focus on governing the country, rather than spending time working on implementing a new constitution. Despite the upheaval over the constitution, Chile remains one of the most stable and prosperous nations in Latin America, with the region’s highest rating on the United Nations Human Development Index.