Period of increased political activity. Left-wing parties united and formed the Popular Action Front(FRAP), supported by the newly formed Unified Workers Central(CUT). A new Christian Democratic Party(PDC) under EDUARDO FREI MONTALVA (1911–82) also emerged, appealing to Catholic workers, urban white-collar employees, and the rural poor.
In presidential elections, a former finance minister, conservative senator Jorge Alessandri, won a plurality of the vote, beating SALVADOR ALLENDE GOSSENS (1908–73) of the FRAP by a mere 33,500 votes. Alessandri vowed to restore free enterprise and seek out foreign capital.
