Former minister Pablo Longueira returned to the public stage at a support dinner organized by right-wing leaders, following his acquittal in the SQM case. In his speech, he stressed the need for a broad coalition around José Antonio Kast for the upcoming elections. He ruled out personal ambitions and invoked Jaime Guzmán's legacy as an ethical guide.
The dinner took place at the Los Buenos Muchachos restaurant in downtown Santiago, gathering key opposition figures, including former ministers like Andrés Chadwick, parliamentarians, mayors, and leaders from parties such as the Republican Party, UDI, RN, and Evópoli. The event, framed as a show of solidarity after a decade of what organizers called unjust persecution, was seen as an effort to reorganize politically following the first presidential round.
Visibly moved, Longueira started his speech by thanking the support: “Bueno, la verdad es que no me merezco esto. Demasiado cariño, estoy muy emocionado. La verdad es que estoy impactado. No sé cómo llega tanta gente a hacer esto”. He reflected on recent years, highlighting the social outbreak and constitutional processes. He stated that during the protests “se intentó derrocar a un presidente elegido democráticamente”, praising Sebastián Piñera's choice not to involve the Armed Forces and to uphold institutions.
He viewed the end of the constitutional cycle as stabilization and saw the current landscape as a chance for the center-right and right to govern. His main call was to build a broad alliance to back José Antonio Kast, whom he expects to win: “El gran desafío que tenemos hoy es crear una alianza que le dé mayorías al gobierno de José Antonio Kast, que creo que triunfará, y a partir de ahí crear una coalición lo más amplia posible”. He stressed his role would only be as a unifier: “Yo solo seré instrumento de unidad”, ruling out positions in a future government.
He praised the Concertación's 20 years in power as a stability model and criticized short alternations. He remembered Jaime Guzmán, UDI founder, as a martyr and moral pillar: “Ojalá le hagan honor a su estilo, a su rectitud y a su honestidad”. He explained his backing of Kast due to historical gremialismo ties, rather than Evelyn Matthei, emphasizing unity around a shared project amid growing polarization.