SANTIAGO – The leftwing political movement Frente Amplio (FA) has formed a new political party. The movement surprised during the last elections but has struggled in the months after to keep the political front united. Four political parties will be part of the new party that will be launched in early 2019.
The movement, consisting of 14 (!) different political parties, has been suffering from internal conflicts, lack of leadership and ideological discussions between parties since the successful elections in 2017.
To ensure unity ahead of the regional elections in 2020 and to tackle these tensions, four political parties have decided to merge into a new political party, to be launched in early 2019.
The Libertarian Left, New Democracy, Autonomist Movement, and Socialism and Freedom will all be part of the new political party. The initiative was launched in a Santiago theatre in the presence of FA-leaders Gabriel Boric, Gonzalo Winter and Valparaíso mayor Jorge Sharp.
Jorge Sharp, seen as a leftwing candidate for the presidential elections in 2020, presented the to-be launched party as “an alternative for the 2020 elections”.
Among other proposals, the political party will focus on environmental issues and the improvement of human rights and education in Chile.
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Struggles after success
Frente Amplio was the biggest surprise during the Chilean elections last year. Launched in 2017, the leftwing movement with its foundations in the student protests of 2011, managed to grow from three to 20 deputies, got themselves a Senator and over a dozen regional representatives.
Their presidential candidate Beatriz Sánchez obtained 20 percent of the votes in the first round and missed the second round by just 3 percent.
After the elections, Sánchez left the political stage. Frente Amplio continued but struggled. The new political party aims to reunite the forces of the leftwing in Chile.
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Editor-In-Chief Boris van der Spek is the founder of Chile Today.