Latin America is not just turning right; it is turning angry, and Washington is cheering. From Santiago to Buenos Aires, voters are rejecting the centre, embracing a new, unapologetic right.

To the right

In 2025, a series of elections across Latin America underscored a pronounced rightward shift in the region’s politics. In Chile’s December 14 presidential runoff, far‑right candidate José Antonio Kast won with about 58 % of the vote, defeating leftist Jeannette Jara and marking a dramatic conservative victory in a country long shaped by its democratic transition from dictatorship. Earlier on October 19, Bolivia’s general election delivered a historic result as centrist‑right Rodrigo Paz ended nearly two decades of leftist rule, securing the presidency in a contest that reflected broad right‑leaning support. In Argentina’s October 26 legislative elections, President Javier Milei’s libertarian party, La Libertad Avanza, made significant gains in both chambers of Congress, consolidating his political influence. And in Honduras’s November 30 general election, conservative National Party candidate Nasry Asfura has led the vote count in a tightly contested race expected to shift the country away from the progressive government of Xiomara Castro, with the final result still pending amid a recount. Together with sustained conservative leadership in countries like Ecuador, Paraguay, and El Salvador, these outcomes illustrate the growing momentum of right‑wing and centre‑right forces across the region.

Latin America and Washington’s National Security Strategy

The 2025 US National Security Strategy places Latin America — the “Western Hemisphere” — at the top of its foreign policy priorities precisely because it defines that region’s political alignment as a matter of US........

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