Over 100 center and left-wing figures, many from the former Concertación, signed a public letter endorsing presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei (UDI) three weeks before the elections. The initiative aims to capture the 'silent vote' from traditional center-left voters uncomfortable with Jeannette Jara. The effort originated from a lunch among Amarillos por Chile militants and quickly expanded.
Last Friday, during a lunch among Amarillos por Chile militant friends, Álvaro Briones, the party's treasurer, proposed consolidating the names of prominent center and left-wing figures supporting Evelyn Matthei in a public declaration. The idea surpassed Amarillos' boundaries and extended to center-left independents who refuse to back Jeannette Jara, a Communist Party militant.
The letter states: “We recognize that Matthei comes from a different sector than ours (...). However, we believe the country faces a crossroads that demands responsibility, openness, and transcending ideological trenches (...). It is time to build bridges and move beyond dogma to bet on leadership capable of generating broad agreements for Chile's urgent tasks”.
Signatories include close allies of former President Ricardo Lagos, such as Marco Colodro, Fernando Bustamente (PPD), Óscar Guillermo Garretón, Matías de la Fuente, and Ricardo Escobar. Also joining are Carlos Altamirano Celis, son of the historic PS leader; Darío Calderón (former radical militant), Jorge Rodríguez (former DC), and Odette Morales, daughter of Salvador Allende's former minister, Mireya Baltra. Historian Sol Serrano is listed, though she stated she did not sign.
This endorsement arrives at a critical moment for Matthei, who polls show in third place behind Jara and José Antonio Kast, and sometimes behind Johannes Kaiser. Matthei's campaign aims to bolster a 'silent vote' akin to the 2022 plebiscite, where Rejection won 62%. They target historical Concertación voters reluctant about Jara. Amarillos sources note the signers are elite and translating support to citizens is challenging. In response, the Republican Party called to concentrate votes on Kast to win the first round.