José Antonio Kast, born in 1966 in Santiago, Chile, is a lawyer, devout Catholic, father of nine, and founder of the Republican Party. He earned a law degree from the Catholic University of Chile, co-founded a law firm in 1989, and taught civil and commercial law there.[3][2][6] Kast's political career began in the ultra-conservative Independent Democratic Union (UDI), where he served as a Buin city councillor (1996-2000) and Chamber of Deputies member (2002-2018), representing Santiago districts. He rose to UDI general secretary but resigned in 2016, criticizing its moderation, and founded the Republican Party in 2019 alongside the Republican Ideas think tank.[1][2][4][6] A firm conservative, Kast opposes abortion (including rape cases), euthanasia, divorce, same-sex marriage, and emergency contraception. He has expressed admiration for Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship, though his legislative record focused on niche issues like statues, nun citizenship, and lotteries.[2][4][6] Born to German immigrants—his father a WWII Nazi Party member who arrived post-war and ran a sausage business—Kast denies family Nazi ties or regime collaboration in Paine.[1][2][4] He ran for president independently in 2017 (7.93% vote) and with Republicans in 2021, winning the first round but losing the runoff to Gabriel Boric. In Chile's December 2025 election, Kast secured a landslide victory with over 58% (more than 7 million votes, a record) against Jeannette Jara, triumphing in every region amid crime and migration fears.[1][2][4][8] As president-elect at age 59, Kast vows an "iron fist" on crime—hunting, judging, and jailing delinquents—plus mass deportations of undocumented migrants, mainly Venezuelans, signaling a far-right shift in South America.[1][2][8] He also leads the Political Network for Values and critiques leftist regimes like Venezuela's.[3][5]