Participation in last weekend’s gubernatorial and mayoral primaries was 6.1% of the electorate nationwide, higher than the previous mayoral primaries, held in November 2020, with 4.37% participation.
In Ñuble, this figure was even better, since on average, the two communes that used the mechanism – Coihueco and Portezuelo – reached 16.4%, placing Portezuelo in second place nationally, with 33.7%, surpassed only by Guaitecas, in the Aysén region, where 35.6% of the electorate voted.
In the case of Coihueco, the national average was also widely exceeded, since 12.3% of the electorate voted.
The figures released by the Electoral Service are positive, especially since the election process took place in a context of bad weather in much of the country.
Furthermore, primaries are elections called by political parties. Although, on this occasion, the participation of independents was agreed, it should be noted that the members of the parties in agreement, authorized to vote, were only 78,499 people, out of a total of 4,844,660 voters.
Previous primaries
Previously, there had been two other municipal primaries: in 2016, which had a 5.5% turnout at the national level. In Ñuble, this figure reached 7.1%, with the elections being held in six communes.
In 2020, the mayoral primaries had a 4.37% turnout. In parallel, the gubernatorial primaries were held, with a 2.87% turnout. On that occasion, Ñuble obtained 5.37% in the mayoral primaries.
“There was more deployment in Portezuelo”
In an attempt to explain the high turnout in the commune of Portezuelo, RN deputy Frank Sauerbaum believes that the effort made in that commune was greater.
“I personally participated in at least two large activities, in a small town, where there were 200 people in each activity, and there were six in total, where the candidate who won in the end knew how to call people together, he knew how to inspire them. In addition, let us not forget that he was the one who would ultimately continue to project what René Schuffeneger left behind, and the mayor still has a lot of support. That caused more participation than normal, compared to the national level,” he said.
Sauerbaum also highlighted that the population of Portezuelo is quite concentrated in specific places, “so it was easy to get those people to come and vote. Now, in Coihueco, I think there was not much of a campaign. The RN candidate did not deploy himself even remotely similar to what was done in Portezuelo. I am aware of the work and effort that the candidate made in Portezuelo, that he deployed himself, that he went door to door, he held large demonstrations, and perhaps that also helped to motivate, because they made many programs on social networks, which might have helped, something that perhaps was not done well enough in Coihueco,” he specified.
Sauerbaum added that there is still a long way to go before people become aware of the importance of political activity and become more involved, “but I am not in favor of forcing anyone. I think that there is a lack of more intensive civic education, in which people assume that the responsibility of choosing good or bad candidates is theirs, not the parties. So it is important that there be more intensive civic education in schools, and to raise awareness of the importance of public activity in making the difference between good or bad administration, not only at the central level, but also at the local level,” he said, referring to the idea launched by some party leaders to make primaries mandatory for the latter.
“It is not up to me to judge a possible transfer”
In the UDI, meanwhile, its regional president, Isabel Troncoso, stated that “first of all, we must highlight citizen participation and our call as Chile Vamos, despite all the electoral and meteorological forecasts. I would also like to value the great vote of our UDI candidates, who, in the sum of their votes, position us as the main party in Ñuble in these primaries, counting 2,426 votes, adding both communes. This achievement is even more important when the challenge involved competing with two municipal administrations in office,” she mentioned.
Regarding the phenomenon of high participation, he said, “We believe that in the case of Portezuelo, being a small commune in electoral terms, a much more effervescent atmosphere was generated. It is not up to me to judge a possible transfer, because it is also information that I do not know and that does not contribute to the unity of our sector. It is very important that the parties of Chile Vamos today understand that the only way to obtain good results is to unite in both communes to defeat the left in the month of October,” he asserted.
Closeness to the acting mayor
From the academy, Political Marketing expert Paulina Pinchart attributes the good participation results in Ñuble to two factors.
“The smaller and more rural the communities are, and because of the characteristics of their people, the majority see that the only help they will be able to get is, in fact, from the municipality. Therefore, they participate in these activities because they feel involved, and they do care and it can change their lives who wins,” he said.
Secondly, he mentioned, “if the mayor who is in office was the one who managed to mobilize, one can ask whether, in fact, due to the power he already has, the number of connections he already has and the contacts he has, he made use of ‘carrying’,” he said.
Pinchart stressed that “it always exists (the hauling) and it usually occurs much more when a mayor is in office, because it is easier for him to move everything, and even, to occupy places that are the municipality’s own,” he said.
Meanwhile, for political scientist and academic at UdeC, Jeanne Simon, the triumph, for example, of the candidate of the mayor in office in Portezuelo, has to do with his support, which is favoring the election of his representative.
“I think it is a fairly common pattern within the country, thinking for example, of Rodolfo Carter in Florida and his ‘dolphin’, who won there,” he said.
Simon also highlighted the role of information in the Portezuelo case.
“I imagine that the mayor and his team supported the candidate and informed, encouraged, and promoted people to go and vote. And since it is a small town, there is also a personal commitment to the mayor, and I imagine that it has to do with proximity and information. It might also be that they helped people to vote, but I would like to believe that it has more to do with an evaluation of the mayor. If the mayor kept his commitments during his term, kept his word, etc., trust was generated in him. If the candidate who was voted for, who is the mayor’s ‘dolphin’, also worked within the commune, he has generated trust, and in a certain way he poses the question ‘why vote for another person, when one already knows who supports him and how he has been fulfilling his promises’,” he said.
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