Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Chile
conventional short form: Chile
local long form: Republica de Chile
local short form: Chile
etymology: derivation of the name is unclear, but it may come from the Mapuche word "chilli" meaning "limit of the earth" or from the Quechua "chiri" meaning "cold"

Government type:
presidential republic

Capital:
name: Santiago; note - Valparaiso is the seat of the national legislature
geographic coordinates: 33 27 S, 70 40 W
time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in August; ends second Sunday in May; note - Punta Arenas observes DST throughout the year

Administrative divisions:
15 regions (regiones, singular - region); Aysen, Antofagasta, Araucania, Arica y Parinacota, Atacama, Biobio, Coquimbo, Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, Los Lagos, Los Rios, Magallanes y de la Antartica Chilena, Maule, Region Metropolitana (Santiago), Tarapaca, Valparaiso
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica

Independence:
18 September 1810 (from Spain)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 18 September (1810)

Constitution:
many previous; latest adopted 11 September 1980, effective 11 March 1981; amended many times, last in 2011; note - in late 2015, the Chilean Government initiated a process to reform its constitution (2016)

Legal system:
civil law system influenced by several West European civil legal systems; judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Tribunal

International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: yes
citizenship by descent: yes
dual citizenship recognized: yes
residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Michelle BACHELET Jeria (since 11 March 2014); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Michelle BACHELET Jeria (since 11 March 2014)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a single 4-year term; election last held on 19 November 2017 with a runoff held 17 December 2017 (next to be held in November 2021)
election results: Sebastian PINERA Echenique elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Sebastian PINERA Echenique (independent) 36.6%; Alejandro GUILLIER (independent) 22.7%; Beatriz SANCHEZ (independent) 20.3%; Jose Antonio KAST (independent) 7.9%; Carolina GOIC (PDC) 5.9%; Marco ENRIQUEZ-OMINAMI (PRO) 5.7%; other 0.9%; percent of second round vote - Sebastian PINERA Echenique 54.6%, Alejandro GUILLIER 45.4%; PINERA will take office 11 March 2018

Legislative branch:
description: bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (38 seats; to increase to 43 on 11 March 2018 and 50 in 2022); members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 8-year terms with one-half of the membership renewed every 4 years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (120 seats; to increase to 155 on 11 March 2018; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 4-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held on 19 November 2017 (next to be held in 2021); Chamber of Deputies - last held on 19 November 2017 (next to be held in 2021)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - New Majority Coalition (formerly known as Concertacion) 19 (PDC 6, PS 6, PPD 6, MAS 1), Let's Go Chile Coalition (formerly known as the Coalition for Change and the Alianza coalition) 15 (RN 6, UDI 8, Amplitude Party 1), independent 4; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - New Majority 68 (PDC 21, PS 16, PPD 14, PC 6, PRSD 6, Citizen Left 1, independent 4), Coalition for Change 47 (UDI 29, RN 14, independent 3, EP 1), Liberal Party 1, independent 4
note: in January 2015, the Chilean Congress voted to end the binomial system that was put in place under Gen. Augusto PINOCHET; the Congress also voted to expand its size (155 seats in the chamber of Deputies and 50 seats in the Senate) and establish rules to ensure that there is equitable gender representation; the new electoral system will be put in place in the November 2017 elections

Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (consists of a court president and 20 members or ministros); Constitutional Court (consists of 10 members); Elections Qualifying Court (consists of 5 members)
judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court president and judges (ministers) appointed by the president of the republic and ratified by the Senate from lists of candidates provided by the court itself; judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 70; Constitutional Court members appointed - 3 by the Supreme Court, 3 by the president of the republic, 2 by the Chamber of Deputies, and 2 by the Senate; members serve 9-year terms with partial membership replacement every 3 years (the court reviews constitutionality of legislation); Elections Qualifying Court members appointed by lottery - 1 by the former president or vice-president of the Senate and 1 by the former president or vice-president of the Chamber of Deputies, 2 by the Supreme Court, and 1 by the Appellate Court of Valparasio; members appointed for 4-year terms
subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; oral criminal tribunals; military tribunals; local police courts; specialized tribunals and courts in matters such as family, labor, customs, taxes, and electoral affairs

Political parties and leaders:
Amplitude (Amplitud) [Lily PEREZ] Broad Social Movement or MAS [Cristian TAPIA Ramos] Democratic Revolution or RD [Rodrigo ECHECOPAR] Let’s Go Chile Coalition (Chile Vamos) (formerly the Alliance for Chile, includes Political Evolution or EVOPOLI [Jorge SAINT JEAN], Independent Regionalist Party or PRI [Alejandra BRAVO Hidalgo], National Renewal or RN [Cristian MONCKEBERG Bruner], and Independent Democratic Union or UDI [Jacqueline VAN RYSSELBERGHE Herrera]) Liberal Party (Partido Liberal de Chile) [Vlado MIROSEVIC] New Majority Coalition (Nueva Mayoria) (includes Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Carolina GOIC Boroevic], Communist Party of Chile or PC [Guillermo TEILLIER del Valle], Party for Democracy or PPD [Gonzalo NAVARRETE], Radical Social Democratic Party or PRSD [Ernesto VELASCO Rodriguez], and Socialist Party or PS [Alvaro ELIZALDE Soto]) Progressive Party or PRO [Patricia MORALES]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Roman Catholic Church, particularly conservative groups such as Opus Dei United Labor Central or CUT (includes trade unionists from the country's 5 largest labor confederations)
other: university student federations at all major universities

International organization participation:
APEC, BIS, CAN (associate), CD, CELAC, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OECD (enhanced engagement), OPANAL, OPCW, Pacific Alliance, PCA, SICA (observer), UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Juan Gabriel VALDES Soublette (since 21 May 2014)
chancery: 1732 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 785-1746
FAX: [1] (202) 887-5579
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Carol PEREZ (since 14 November 2016)
embassy: Avenida Andres Bello 2800, Las Condes, Santiago
mailing address: APO AA 34033
telephone: [56] (2) 2330-3000
FAX: [56] (2) 2330-3710, 2330-3160

Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; a blue square the same height as the white band at the hoist-side end of the white band; the square bears a white five-pointed star in the center representing a guide to progress and honor; blue symbolizes the sky, white is for the snow-covered Andes, and red represents the blood spilled to achieve independence
note: design influenced by the US flag

National symbol(s):
huemul (mountain deer), Andean condor; national colors: red, white, blue

National anthem:
name: "Himno Nacional de Chile" (National Anthem of Chile)
lyrics/music: Eusebio LILLO Robles and Bernardo DE VERA y Pintado/Ramon CARNICER y Battle
note: music adopted 1828, original lyrics adopted 1818, adapted lyrics adopted 1847; under Augusto PINOCHET"s military rule, a verse glorifying the army was added; however, as a protest, some citizens refused to sing this verse; it was removed when democracy was restored in 1990