Elections in times of pandemic: The chilean case

Abstract

Since the arrival of Covid-19 in Chile, on March 3, 2020, Chile has had eight election processes to decide from whether a new Constitution is wanted, to the definition of different positions of popular election, such as the recent presidential one; the situation has been complex, not without its problems, with changes in the date of several of them and, in several of them, with unexpected results. The communicational challenge, in times of pandemic, has forced creativity and the way to transmit messages and proposals to voters. The present analysis gathers the context of the electoral situation in Chile since the arrival of Covid-19. This review includes the main communication tools used during the electoral campaigns carried out in a pandemic, their strategies and effects, with the aim of evaluating the new techniques that break into electoral politics and how they have modified the way of campaigning. Traditional models such as meetings, massive on-site events, tours of fairs or public spaces have been replaced by massive meetings via live streaming, which are later replicated by different social networks, achieving a greater number of visits and broadcasts.