The strength of Chile's institutions today is one of the pillars of the country's democracy, which remains firm at a time when trust in institutions is a challenge for many democracies in the world.

It is in this context that Chile stands out as one of the countries with the greatest confidence in a particular entity: the electoral system, represented by the Servicio Electoral de Chile (Servel).

Latinobarómetro 2024: Confidence in Servel

According to the Latinobarómetro Report 2024: Resilient Democracy, trust in electoral institutions in Latin America stands at 34%, after reaching a historic low of 26% in 2017. However, Chile, together with Uruguay, leads the region with 60% confidence in its electoral institution.

This high level of trust is a reflection of Chile's solid electoral system, characterized by its transparency, efficiency and high standards in the management of electoral processes. Since its first evaluation by Latinobarómetro in 2016, the Servel has maintained a positive reputation, consolidating itself as one of the most respected institutions in the country.

National evaluations confirm confidence in Servel

At the local level, the Barometer of Access to Information 2023-2024, of the National Press Association (ANP), which gathers the perceptions of journalists working in national media on the level of access to information of different institutions of public relevance, also reports a positive evaluation of the Servel. The electoral body enjoys high percentages in the dimensions of Availability, Reliability and Timeliness of the information provided. In terms of access to information, in all dimensions, the Servel is in third place with 71.6% approval.

On the other hand, the "Post-plebiscite" survey of the Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez (UAI), carried out in January 2024, highlighted the perception of the Chilean Electoral Service as the institution in which citizens have the most confidence (with only 31.1% of distrust).

International recognition

"What Servel does is democracy. If we do well the elections and the control of public expenditures involved in this, we will have a prestige in the citizenship and we believe that so far we have been achieving it" says Andrés Tagle, president of the Board of Directors of the Servel. "We also believe that there is great recognition in other countries. We are ranked among the countries with the best electoral process in Latin America", he adds.

Thus, this recognition and trust given by citizens to the Chilean electoral system also crosses borders and regions. This is evidenced by the fact that the Chilean Electoral Service has been active in training, observing and advising other institutions on electoral material. The Servel has participated in seminars on disinformation and electoral integrity, in training for electoral authorities, as well as observing other elections.

"Citizen confidence in electoral bodies not only strengthens the legitimacy of electoral processes, but also encourages civic participation and commitment to democratic values. Having a transparent and internationally recognized electoral system is a fundamental asset for our democracy and our country's image", says Rossana Dresdner, executive director of Imagen de Chile.