In an October 2020 plebiscite, Chileans made a historic decision. They were ready to ditch their dictatorship-era constitution—or so we thought.
On Sept. 4, Chileans will vote to approve or reject a new draft constitution that has been written by an elected constitutional convention over the past year. Per the latest polls, “reject” holds a nearly 10-point lead over “approve,” although 17 percent of respondents remain undecided. Unlike other elections in Chile though, voting in this one is mandatory—making the vote a toss-up. Still, opinion trends point to a reversal from 2021, when the idea of replacing the constitution garnered widespread support from the Chilean public.
