One of the last vestiges of the dictatorship. This is the habitual criticism directed at the binominal electoral system in Chile, which favours two large coalitions and conspires against political representation. Initiatives to reform the system come and go. They either become bogged down in congress or make sudden progress before just as swiftly getting sidelined. Given this context it was not surprising that the opposition was caught unawares when, only six weeks after taking office, the government of President Michelle Bachelet presented a proposal to congress to reform the system, which fused some of these previous projects. The opposition, however, was not alone. Parties within the ruling Nueva Mayoría coalition were also surprised – and not all of them pleasantly.End of preview - This article contains approximately 933 words.
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