(MENAFN) Chile’s presidential election will move to a runoff on December 14 after none of the eight contenders managed to secure the 50% threshold needed for an outright win on Sunday.

The second round will feature left-wing candidate Jeannette Jara against far-right contender Jose Antonio Kast. Jara, representing the Communist Party, previously served as labor minister in the current left-leaning administration. Kast, leader of the Republican Party, is an ultraconservative lawyer and former legislator who campaigned on a hardline platform calling for an “iron fist” approach to restore public order.

With 83% of votes counted, Jara held a narrow lead at 26.7%, followed closely by Kast with 24.1%. Economist Franco Parisi finished third, but only the top two advance to the runoff.

Both candidates now face the challenge of appealing to supporters of the eliminated contenders. For Jara, this will be particularly difficult, as most of the votes for the eliminated candidates came from right-leaning voters.

Jara expressed gratitude to her backers and encouraged them to carry forward “a message of hope and the future” ahead of the second round. Kast, meanwhile, addressed his supporters alongside Evelyn Matthei, who finished fifth with 12.8% of the vote, promptly conceded, and pledged her support for Kast in the upcoming runoff.

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