Chilean National Congress During the Ratification Process of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States of America

This research shows that the legislative ratification process of the Free Trade Agreement between the United States and Chile was not discussed and voted according to party lines but personal opinions towards the north American nation and especial interests affected by particular clauses of the treaty. It also implied that the continuum in the spectrum left-right wing, position in favor or against the past Pinochet’s dictatorship and the individual position towards the position of Chile in the United Nations Security Council during the pre-Iraq war crisis do not represent a significant explanatory variable, as well as previous opinions or political positions held by individual legislators during the cold war. However, relevant and significant explanatory variables are constituted by the constituencies represented by each legislator on the rural-urban axis plus position towards globalization are more relevant, especially in terms of position towards free markets. With this, this research can enlighten about the future of the Chilean-US relations and the attitudes of the political elite towards the United States. Methodologically it is build a database that includes the voting records and statements given by all members of the Chamber of Deputies and Senate at the committee and the floor. This includes the political party and every opinion expressed in the chamber and also a representative sample of statements released to the national press during the period of legislative ratification. With this, a coding following Budge and Bara methods so to make possible a factor analysis and a series of logistic regressions that can show the main factors to vote in favor or against the treaty