The United Centre ( es, Centro Unido; CU) was a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

that defined itself as transversal and

centrist Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to Left-w ...

. It was created in early 2021 and is in the process of being legalized by the Electoral Service. It was led by Cristián Contreras Radovic, who expressed interest in presenting a presidential candidacy in the

2021 elections Many elections occurred in 2021. The National Democratic Institute maintains calendar of elections around the world * 2021 United Nations Security Council election * 2021 national electoral calendar * 2021 local electoral calendar Africa * 2021 ...

, but later became a candidate for Senator. It held one seat in the Chamber of Deputies of Chile prior to its dissolution, after which its member sat as an independent. The party was dissolved in February 2022 because it did not receive at least 5% of votes in the 2021 parliamentary elections to maintain its legality.

History

The origins of the group date back to November 2020, when journalist Cristián Contreras began the process of gathering support for a future political party. On January 7, 2021, the United Centre deed of incorporation was signed, which began the procedures before the Electoral Service of Chile (Servel) to begin its legalization process, which concluded on February 23 with the publication of the articles of incorporation. On June 17, 2021, the party announced that it had reached 18,775 signatures, which would allow it to establish itself in the regions of Antofagasta, Coquimbo, Valparaíso, Metropolitana, O'Higgins, Maule, Biobío, Araucanía and Los Lagos. For the collection of signatures, the party had the support of Gino Lorenzini and

Franco Parisi Franco Aldo Parisi Fernández (born 25 August 1967) is a Chilean Business engineering, business engineer and economist. He received recognition for doing radio and television programs about economy along with his brother Antonino Parisi, and has ...

, both promoters of the Party of the People, who seek to develop a joint list of parliamentary candidates with United Centre.

Controversies

The president of the party, Cristián Contreras Radovic, was criticized on several occasions for not wearing a mask in public spaces during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Chile The worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 () severely affected Chile. The virus was confirmed to have reached Chile on 3 March 2020. Initial cases had been imported from So ...

, especially in public events to collect signatures for the party.

Leadership

* President: Cristián Contreras Radovic * General Secretary: Olga Tosto García * Treasurer: Patricia Ñúñez Alburns

Electoral History

Congress election

References

External links

Official site
Political parties established in 2021 Political parties disestablished in 2022 Political parties in Chile 2021 establishments in Chile Confucian political parties Anti-vaccination organizations Organizations established for the COVID-19 pandemic {{Chile-party-stub