League logoTHE VOTER
A Publication of The League of Women Voters of Greater Birmingham

Published August 2007




Registered to Vote in Chile? Vote or Face Fine

Chile and South America iconDuring a recent vacation trip to northern Chile, I asked my American contact and several Chileans about their rules for voting.  According to them, Chileans who register to vote and who are within a certain proximity to their voting place MUST vote in all elections.  To be registered and not vote is to be subject to a fine equivalent to 200 dollars.  If one is not registered at all, then no fine results. 

Our American contact, a missionary who has been in Chile for 10 years, no longer votes in U.S. elections.  His explanation was that the Chilean postal system is very problematic (which guidebooks also mention), and he could never get his absentee ballot back in time to meet U.S. deadlines.

-- Leonette Slay
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