The Law Today

The Constitution is amended, reestablishing mandatory voting in popular votes.

06 Ene 2023

Introduction

On January 4, 2023, Law No. 21.524 (hereinafter the “Law”) was published in the Official Gazette, which amends the Political Constitution of the Republic (hereinafter the “Constitution”), reestablishing mandatory voting, which in 2012 was replaced by voluntary voting.

The aforementioned Law amends Article 15 of the Constitution, maintaining the secret quality of the vote, but eliminating the references to voluntary voting and establishing a new second paragraph to the mentioned article that expressly states that voting is mandatory in all elections and plebiscites, with the exception of primaries.

As a consequence of the foregoing, the enactment of a Constitutional Organic Law that establishes fines and penalties for non-compliance with the duty to vote established by the Law, its application procedure and the exemptions to such responsibilities is pending.

Contact

Should you require additional information on this matter, please contact Andrea Abascal (aabascal@jdf.cl), and/or Andrés Sepúlveda (asepulveda@jdf.cl).

JDF