National Renewal (Chile)

National Renewal
Renovación Nacional
AbbreviationRN
PresidentRodrigo Galilea
Secretary-GeneralAndrea Balladares
Founded29 April 1987
Registered28 January 1988
Merger ofNational Union Movement
Independent Democratic Union splinters
National Labour Front[1][2]
HeadquartersAvenida Antonio Varas 454, Providencia, Santiago, Chile
Youth wingNational Renewal Youth (JRN)
Women's wingMujeresRN
Indigenous wingPueblos Originarios RN
Membership (2017)31,214 (4th in Chile)[3]
Ideology
Political positionCentre-right[18] to right-wing[20]
National affiliationChile Vamos (since 2015)[21]
Chile Grande y Unido
(since 2025)
Regional affiliationUnion of Latin American Parties[22]
International affiliationInternational Democracy Union[23]
Centrist Democrat International[24]
Colours    Blue, White and Red
Chamber of Deputies
23 / 155
Senate
11 / 50
Party flag
Website
www.rn.cl

The National Renewal (Spanish: Renovación Nacional, RN) is a Chilean political party founded in 1987 with a reformist and liberal-conservative orientation. It is positioned within the centre-right of the political spectrum and, alongside the Independent Democratic Union (UDI), is considered one of the main forces of the Chilean right.

The party emerged in the final phase of the military regime under Augusto Pinochet through the merger of several liberal and moderately conservative movements, including the National Party (PN) and other groups. Its aim was to support the transition to democracy and to consolidate a modern, civic-democratic right.

Since the return to democracy in 1990, RN and the UDI have jointly formed the core of the electoral alliances Alianza and later Chile Vamos. During the periods 2010–2014 and 2018–2022, the party led the national government with Sebastián Piñera serving as President of the Republic.

Ideologically, RN combines market-oriented principles with a commitment to the rule of law, social responsibility and individual freedom. Its intellectual roots lie in liberalism, Christian-humanist thought and republicanism.[25]

At the national level, the party is represented in both chambers of the Chilean Congress and maintains a strong base in urban and more affluent regions. Within the party, both economically liberal and more socially conservative currents coexist.

In Germany, RN cooperates with the CDU and its Konrad Adenauer Foundation[26][27] as well as with the CSU and its Hanns Seidel Foundation.[28]

History

Early years

Renovación Nacional was founded on 29 April 1987, when three right-leaning organisations – the Movimiento de Unión Nacional (MUN), the Frente Nacional del Trabajo (FNT) and parts of the Independent Democratic Union (UDI) – merged ahead of the 1988 Chilean presidential referendum that would determine whether Augusto Pinochet would continue in office.

Shortly thereafter, the UDI split away again due to its strong support for Pinochet, while RN advocated a broader democratic opening. However, when Pinochet was officially nominated as a candidate, the majority of the new party ultimately supported him.

With 351 founding members, RN became the first political party to be officially registered following the lifting of the ban on political parties in place since the 1973 military coup.

Under the leadership of Andrés Allamand, membership increased rapidly and the party played an active role in the transition to democracy. In the 1999 presidential election, it supported the right-wing alliance’s joint candidate, Joaquín Lavín, who narrowly lost the runoff to Ricardo Lagos.

21st century

In the 2000s, RN again put forward Lavín, but after his polling numbers declined, Sebastián Piñera assumed the candidacy. In the 2006 presidential election he narrowly lost to Michelle Bachelet, but won the 2010 election, becoming the first centre-right president since the return to democracy. The party simultaneously gained significant ground in Congress and became one of the most influential political forces in Chile.

Following the 2013 election defeat and internal tensions, several deputies split off to form the movement Amplitud. Under the leadership of Cristián Monckeberg, RN modernised its public image, adopting a new logo in 2014 and a revised statement of principles distancing itself from the Pinochet era. In 2015, RN helped establish the new centre-right coalition Chile Vamos alongside the UDI, Evópoli and the PRI.

During Piñera’s second administration (2018–2022), RN held numerous government positions.

2020s

The Social Outburst of 2019–2020 triggered internal tensions: a moderate faction led by Mario Desbordes supported the constitutional process, while a conservative wing associated with Carlos Larraín opposed it.[29][30]

After a closely contested internal power struggle, Francisco Chahuán, the joint opposition candidate against Desbordes, was elected party president in 2021 and led RN until 2023.[31] His term, however, was marked by fragile control and pronounced internal fragmentation, illustrated by conservative factions supporting José Antonio Kast rather than the official candidate Sebastián Sichel in the 2021 presidential election.[32][33]

In 2022, RN succeeded in re-establishing internal cohesion by unanimously deciding to reject the draft constitution promoted by left-wing, pro-Social Outburst activists.[34][35] Even Desbordes, who had previously expressed sympathy for peaceful demonstrations, opposed the proposal.[36]

In the referendum on the draft constitution, the “Reject” option won with 62% of the vote.[34] RN and its coalition partners – UDI and Evópoli – gained two new allies: the movement Amarillos por Chile, from which the party Democrats later emerged.[37] Both groups brought together former members of the Concertación willing to collaborate with the centre-right; both later endorsed Evelyn Matthei in the 2025 presidential election.[38][39]

In 2023, Chahuán was succeeded by Rodrigo Galilea,[40] a lawyer with a reserved public profile who strengthened RN’s standing by making the party the most-voted force in the 2024 municipal and regional elections.

Presidents of National Renewal

National Renewal has nine party presidents in its history:

Election results

Presidential elections

The following is a list of the presidential candidates supported by the National Renewal. (Information gathered from the Archive of Chilean Elections).

Election year Candidate 1st Round 2nd Round Results
# Votes % Votes # Votes % Votes
1989 Hernán Büchi 2,052,116 29.4% N/a Lost
1993 Arturo Alessandri Besa 1,703,408 24.2% N/a Lost
1999–2000 Joaquín Lavín 3,352,192 47.5% 3,495,569 48.7% Lost
2005–2006 Sebastián Piñera 1,763,694 25.4% 3,236,394 46.5% Lost
2009–2010 Sebastián Piñera 3,074,164 44.1% 3,591,182 51.6% Won
2013 Evelyn Matthei 1,648,481 25.1% 2,111,891 37.8% Lost
2017 Sebastián Piñera 2,418,540 36.6% 3,796,918 54.5% Won
2021 Sebastián Sichel 898,510 12.7% N/a Lost
2025 Evelyn Matthei 1,617,720 12.5% N/a Lost

Congress election

Election year Chamber of Deputies Senate Status
# Votes % Votes Seats # Votes % Votes Seats
1989 1,242,432 18.3%
29 / 120
 731,678 10.8%
5 / 38
 Minority
1993 1,098,852 16.3%
29 / 120
 279,580 14.9%
11 / 38
 Minority
1997 971,903 16.8%
23 / 120
 629,394 14.9%
7 / 38
 Minority
2001 845,865 13.8%
18 / 120
 342,045 19.7%
4 / 18
 Minority
2005 932,422 14.1%
19 / 120
 515,185 10.8%
8 / 38
 Minority
2009 1,178,392 17.8%
18 / 120
 382,728 20.2%
8 / 38
 Minority
2009 1,178,392 17.8%
18 / 120
 382,728 20.2%
8 / 38
 Governing coalition with minority overall status
2013 928,037 14.9%
19 / 120
 733,726 16.2%
8 / 38
 Minority
2017 1,067,270 17.8%
36 / 155
 349,622 20.9%
9 / 43
 Governing coalition with minority overall status
2021 693,474 10.96%
25 / 155
 549,553 11.8%
12 / 50
 Minority
2025 868,240 8.10%
13 / 155
 431,539 13.93%
8 / 50
 Opposition

Party logos

  • Emblem used 1987–2001, 2002–2005, and 2012–2014.
    Emblem used 1987–2001, 2002–2005, and 2012–2014.
  • Emblem used 2001–2002.
    Emblem used 2001–2002.
  • Emblem used 2005–2009.
    Emblem used 2005–2009.
  • Emblem used 2009–2012.
    Emblem used 2009–2012.
  • Emblem used since 2014.
    Emblem used since 2014.

See also

References

  1. ^ "El desembarco de la derecha" (PDF). Análisis (in Spanish). 10 March 1987. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 April 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  2. ^ a b Flores-Macías, Gustavo A. (2012), After Neoliberalism?: The Left and Economic Reforms in Latin America, Oxford University Press, p. 153
  3. ^ "Affiliates table" (PDF). servel.cl. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  4. ^ Arceneaux, Craig; Pion-Berlin, David (2005), Transforming Latin America: The International And Domestic Origins of Change, University of Pittsburgh Press, p. 148
  5. ^ "El conservador Sebastián Piñera gana la presidencia en Chile". 17 December 2017.
  6. ^ "El conservador Sebastián Piñera juró como presidente de Chile". 11 March 2018.
  7. ^ Kirby, Peadar (2003), Introduction to Latin America: Twenty-First Century Challenges, Sage, p. 157, ...the Renovacion Nacional (RN) with its internal divisions between liberals and conservatives...
  8. ^ Délano, Manuel (10 February 2010). "Liberales y conservadores se reparten el Gobierno de Chile". El País.
  9. ^ [5][6][7][8]
  10. ^ "La crisis del milagro neoliberal".
  11. ^ "La crisis del milagro neoliberal".
  12. ^ Verónica Marín (27 December 2018). "Evangélicos, liberales, históricos, kastistas y pinochetistas: Quién es quién en la bancada de RN". EMOL.
  13. ^ "RN entrega respaldo a diputada Flores tras dichos sobre ser pinochetista: "Aquí nadie sobra" - La Tercera". www.latercera.com. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  14. ^ [12][13]
  15. ^ "Chile's ex-leader Bachelet favoured in presidential vote". France 24. 16 November 2013.
  16. ^ "Chilean ambassador resigns after praising Pinochet". BBC. 9 June 2010.
  17. ^ "Sebastián Piñera, el millonario que votó contra el general Pinochet". 17 December 2017.
  18. ^ [15][16][17]
  19. ^ Posner, Paul W. (2008), State, Market, and Democracy in Chile: The Constraint of Popular Participation, Palgrave Macmillan, p. 114
  20. ^ [2][19]
  21. ^ "UDI, RN, PRI y Evópoli firman acuerdo para la creación de una nueva coalición política". La Tercera. 29 January 2015. Archived from the original on 14 August 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  22. ^ "Partidos Miembros". Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  23. ^ "Members | International Democracy Union". 1 February 2018.
  24. ^ "Parties - IDC-CDI".
  25. ^ Marcelo Pollack: The New Right in Chile, 1973–1997. Palgrave Macmillan, London 1999, ISBN 0-333-72473-9, pp. 161–163.
  26. ^ "El desaire de Konrad Adenauer a la DC: invitó a RN, Amarillos y Demócratas a Alemania «por ser de centro»" (in Spanish). Radio Bío-Bío. 28 December 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  27. ^ "Konrad Adenauer invita a Amarillos, Demócratas y RN a Alemania y excluye a la DC por «alejarse» del centro político" (in Spanish). La Tercera. 28 December 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  28. ^ "Five young Chilean local councillors visit Bavaria". Hanns Seidel Foundation. 28 August 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  29. ^ "Cómo se incubó la guerra sin cuartel Larraín v/s Desbordes que otra vez revuelve a RN" (in Spanish). La Tercera. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  30. ^ "Carlos Larraín: "Después de octubre, Mario Desbordes …"". YouTube (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  31. ^ "Nueva directiva de RN: triunfo de Chahuán" (in Spanish). Emol. 20 June 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  32. ^ "Camila Flores (RN) hints support for José Antonio Kast" (in Spanish). T13. 7 October 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  33. ^ "Sichel questions RN MPs who support Kast" (in Spanish). El Mostrador. 6 August 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  34. ^ a b "Verfassungsreferendum in Chile gescheitert" (PDF) (in German). German Bundestag, Scientific Services. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  35. ^ "Verfassungsreferendum in Chile: Klares Nein zum Fortschritt" (in German). taz. 5 September 2022. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  36. ^ "Renovación Nacional announces support for "Reject"" (in Spanish). Emol. 4 June 2022. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  37. ^ "Amarillos and Demócratas alert over constitutional norms" (in Spanish). CIPER Chile. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  38. ^ "Amarillos supports Evelyn Matthei" (in Spanish). Radio Universidad de Chile. 6 June 2025. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  39. ^ "Los demócratas estamos comprometidos con Evelyn Matthei". YouTube (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  40. ^ "Rodrigo Galilea won RN's internal election" (in Spanish). Radio Cooperativa. 9 September 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Renewal_(Chile)