Chile's Bachelet wins first round presidential race at 46%

Google – AFP, 18 November 2013

Chilean presidential candidate for the New Majority coalition Michelle Bachelet

 waves before casting her vote at a polling station during the general election 

in Santiago on November 17, 2013 (AFP, Claudio Cruz)

Santiago — Socialist Michelle Bachelet won a first round of Chile's presidential race Sunday, with voters putting her on track to replace a conservative, early returns showed.

Bachelet, Chile's first woman president who worked as the head of UN Women after her first term in office, is now eyeing a potential non-consecutive second term as the leader of the South American nation with the highest per capita income.

Bachelet was leading with 46.42 percent of the vote against conservative Evelyn Matthei, at 25.26 percent, with 34.4 percent of the votes tallied.

If Bachelet, who is seeking to succeed conservative billionaire President Sebastian Pinera, does not get over 50 percent of the ballots, a run-off -- also the country's first between two women -- will be held December 15.

Matthei and Bachelet were trailed by independent economist Franco Parisi with 11.07 percent and Socialist Franco-Chilean filmmaker Marco Enriquez-Ominami, with 10.73 percent, the early returns showed about half an hour after polls closed.