Weekly Report - 20 April 2004

The Spiniak paedophilia scandal has taken a heavy toll on the political fortunes of Chile's right. Most significantly, it has removed Joaquí­n Laví­n from his pedestal as the comfortable leader in the opinion polls. His attempt to salvage the situation by persuading the leaders of both rightwing parties to step down appears to have foundered, as the outgoing leader of Renovación Nacional (RN), Sebastián Piñera, has succeeded in getting his candidate, former senator Sergio Diez, elected as his replacement.