Felipe José Kast Sommerhoff (born 9 June 1977) is a Chilean economist, researcher, consultant, and politician.

Felipe Kast
Official portrait, 2022.
Member of the Senate of Chile
Assumed office
11 March 2018
Preceded byCreation of the charge
Constituency11th Circunscription (Araucanía Region)
President of Evópoli
In office
26 January 2015 – 6 November 2016
Preceded byMaría Francisca Correa
Succeeded byJorge Saint-Jean
Member of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile
In office
11 March 2014 – 11 March 2018
Preceded byAlberto Cardemil
Succeeded byDissolution of the charge
Constituency22nd District (Santiago Centro)
Minister of Planning
In office
11 March 2010 – 13 October 2011
Preceded byPaula Quintana
Succeeded byJoaquín Lavín
Personal details
Born (1977-06-09) 9 June 1977 (age 47)
Santiago, Chile
Political party Evópoli (2012–present)
Spouse
Emelia Puga
(m. 2004; sep. 2022)
ChildrenFour
Parent(s)Miguel Kast Rist
Cecilia Christine Sommerhoff Hyde
RelativesJosé Antonio Kast (uncle)
Javier Etcheberry (stepfather)
Pablo Kast (brother)
Michael Kast (grandfather)
Robert Schumann (great-great-great-grandfather)
Clara Schumann (great-great-great-grandmother)
Alma mater
OccupationPolitician
ProfessionEconomist

Early life and family

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Kast is a nephew of far-right politician José Antonio Kast and son of the late economist Miguel Kast, who served as Minister of State and President of the Central Bank under the government of Augusto Pinochet. He is also the grandson of Michael Kast,[1] a German officer who escaped American custody, obtained a false identity, and migrated to Chile in 1950, and great-great-great-grandson of German composers Robert Schumann and Clara Schumann.[citation needed]

Career

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A graduate in economics from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile with a PhD from Harvard University,[2] Kast has been Minister of Planning, presidential candidate in the 2017 primary elections and deputy for the commune of Santiago between 2014 and 2018. He currently serves as senator for the Araucanía Region after being elected to a six-year term in the 2017 parliamentary elections.[citation needed]

As a right-wing independent,[citation needed] Kast actively participated in President Sebastián Piñera's first government, first as Minister of State and then as Presidential Delegate for emergency camps and villages occupied by 27 February 2010 Earthquake victims.

Kast is a founder and former president of Evópoli, a conservative-liberal and centre-right party.[3] In what was described as a blow to Kast Gloria Hutt was elected president of the party in October 2022 rather than Kast's candidate Luciano Cruz-Coke.[4]

References

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  1. ^ PIlleux Cepeda, Mauricio (16 January 2020). "Kast". Genealog (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Felipe Kast asume como director del programa social de Libertad y Desarrollo" (in Spanish). Emol. 5 August 2009. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  3. ^ "Operación Infancia: el sueño de hacer de Chile un país más justo". Araucanía Diario (in Spanish). 2 January 2020. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  4. ^ "La victoria de Gloria Hutt sobre Cruz-Coke: el trasfondo de la primera derrota interna de Felipe Kast en Evópoli". Ex-Ante (in Spanish). 23 October 2022. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
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