Weekly Report - 06 February 2014 (WR-14-05)

With just over a month until president-elect Michelle Bachelet takes office, her authority has already come under question in relation to education – a key electoral issue. While Bachelet’s selection of a veteran politician, Nicolás Eyzaguirre, as her education minister [WR-14-04] prompted grumbling from students, her choice of education consultant, Claudia Peirano, as Eyzaguirre’s deputy, proved so unpopular with the students and radical members of her Nueva Mayoría alliance that a week later Peirano announced she would not take up the post. This underscores the difficulty Bachelet will face in keeping the Nueva Mayoría united once she takes office.