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Evelyn Matthei
Evelyn Matthei
	Official portrait, 2023
Mayor of Providencia
	In office; 6 December 2016 – 6 December 2024
Preceded by	Josefa Errázuriz
Succeeded by	Jaime Bellolio
Ministry of Labor and Social Provision
	In office; 16 January 2011 – 22 July 2013
President	Sebastián Piñera
Preceded by	Camila Merino
Succeeded by	Juan Carlos Jobet
Member of the Senate; for Coquimbo
	In office; 11 March 1998 – 16 January 2011
Preceded by	Alberto Cooper
Succeeded by	Gonzalo Uriarte Herrera
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
	In office; 11 March 1990 – 11 March 1998
Constituency	23rd district (1990–1994); 15th district (1994–1998)
Personal details
Born	Evelyn Rose Matthei Fornet; 11 November 1953 (age 71); Santiago, Chile
Political party	RN (1987–1993); Independent (1993–1999); UDI (1999–present)
Other political; affiliations	Alliance (1989–2015); Chile Vamos (2015–present)
Spouse	Jorge Desormeaux [es] (m. 1979)
Children	3
Parent(s)	Fernando Matthei (father); Elda Fornet (mother)
Alma mater	Pontifical Catholic University of Chile
Occupation	Economist • Politician
Signature

Evelyn Rose Matthei Fornet (born 11 November 1953) is a Chilean politician. Her career includes serving as a member of the Chamber of Deputies from 1990 to 1998 and as a senator from 1998 to 2011. In January 2011, she resigned from the Senate to become Minister of Labor and Social Welfare under President Sebastián Piñera, a position she held until July 2013.^[1] Later that year, she ran for president of Chile as the candidate for the Independent Democrat Union Party but lost in a runoff to former President Michelle Bachelet.^[2]

In 2016, Matthei was elected mayor of Providencia, a commune in Santiago, and was re-elected in 2021. She resigned in 2024 to campaign for the 2025 presidential election, where she is currently leading in the polls.^[3]

Trained as an economist, Matthei began her career as a lecturer at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile before moving into management roles in the private sector.^[4] After Chile's return to democracy in 1988, she transitioned to politics. In addition to her political achievements, she is also an accomplished pianist.^[5]

Family and education

Matthei was born in Santiago de Chile, the second child of Elda Fornet Fernández and Fernando Matthei Aubel, a military officer. Her father was Minister of Health during Augusto Pinochet’s government; later becoming Commander-in-chief of the Air Force, and in this capacity, a member of the Military Junta until Chile’s return to democracy.^[4]

As a child, Matthei's family was friends with Michelle Bachelet's family. Bachelet later became president of Chile, and in 2013, Matthei ran against her for the presidency.^[6]

During her secondary education, Matthei developed a passion for music and piano, and upon graduation expressed interest in becoming a concert pianist. Matthei was able to obtain scholarships for her studies.^[5] Following graduation, she took the admissions exams for university; but at the time her father was appointed military attaché to the Chilean Embassy in London, and she decided to pursue her piano career in Britain. Three years later, she realized she would not become a concert pianist and decided to return to Chile.

In 1974, Matthei began studying at the Economics Institute of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, where she earned a licentiate in Economics after four years. She was recognized as the top economics student of her graduating class. However, her thesis was reportedly "stolen," preventing her from fulfilling the requirements for a professional business license.^[4]^[7]

While studying, Matthei worked as a research assistant. She collaborated with former President Sebastián Piñera on a Latin American Economic Commission paper on poverty in the region; as well as a helping develop a textbook on Monetary Theory with Professor Hernando Cortés for the Economics Institute of her university.^[1]

Ancestors of Evelyn Matthei

8. Fernando Matthei Jaeger (1848-1908)

4. Fernando Matthei Gunkel (1887-1956)

9. Emilia Gunckel Friedich (1857-1934)

2. Fernando Matthei Aubel (1925-2017)

10. Jorge Aubel Bückle (1868-1922)

5. Luise Aubel Renz (1903-1964)

11. Hedwig Renz Hube (1876-1916)

1. Evelyn Matthei Fornet (born 1953)

3. Elda Fornet Fernández (1926-2004)

Early career

Matthei started her career as a professor of International Economics at the Economics Institute of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. Following a year of work as a researcher in a private consultancy, Forestal S.A., she took on the role of an analyst in the Superintendencia de AFP. This government body was responsible for overseeing Chile's privatized pension system. Less than a year later she was promoted to the head of the department.

In 1986, Matthei made the decision to resign from her government position and assumed the role of Vice President of Tourism, Commerce, and Securities at Bancard S.A., where she remained until her election as Deputy four years later. During this time, in 1988, she was invited to serve as an adviser for the Social and Economic Commission. She also returned to teaching at the Catholic University, this time as a Professor of Introduction to Economics.

Political career

Matthei entered Chilean politics in the late 1980s, after the military government relaxed control over political activity. She joined National Renewal party's youth group called Patrulla Juvenil ("Youth Patrol"), along with future President of Chile Sebastián Piñera, and future fellow senator and minister Andrés Allamand. She was a member of the party's Political Commission and later elected its National Vice president.

In 1990, she was National Renewal's candidate for Deputy for the 23rd Electoral district, representing the upscale communes of Las Condes, Vitacura, and Lo Barnechea, winning by a broad margin. Following her increasing popularity,^[8] Matthei was tapped as a potential presidential candidate for the center-right Democracy and Progress Coalition. However, following a highly publicized wire-tapping scandal in 1993 known as Piñeragate, involving her and rival presidential hopeful Sebastián Piñera, she was forced to desist from her presidential bid.^[8] Disgusted with the way National Renewal leaders dealt with the scandal, she resigned from the party and continued her political career as an independent until 1999.^[9]

In 1994, she opted to run for Deputy of the 15th Electoral District of San Antonio, winning the seat as an independent with support from the Independent Democrat Union (UDI) party. Upon completion of her term, Matthei was elected senator in 1997, representing the Coquimbo Region, being re-elected in 2005. In 1999, she joined the Independent Democrat Union. As Senator, she became the first woman to preside over the Senate Budget and Oversight Committee. Matthei resigned from her seat in January 2011 when she was appointed Minister of Labor and Social Security by President Sebastián Piñera.^[10]

As Minister, Matthei gained notoriety for her fiery personality and was the center of several heated exchanges with members both of the governing coalition and the opposition.^[9] Her relatively liberal^[2] views on abortion, same-sex marriage and tax reform deepened a growing rift with her own party, and in March 2013, she confided that she had decided to quit politics following completion of her term as Minister.^[11]

On July 17, and after winning the primary, UDI presidential candidate Pablo Longueira resigned citing health reasons. Three days later, the Political Commission of the party unanimously proclaimed Evelyn Matthei as their new presidential candidate for the elections in November.^[12] On December 15, 2013 she lost the presidential election to socialist candidate Michelle Bachelet 62% to 38%.

Personal life

Evelyn Matthei is married to fellow economist and former Chilean Central Bank Deputy Governor Jorge Desormeaux, with whom she has three children. She is a classically trained pianist, and speaks English and German as well as her native Spanish.^[13]

Electoral history

1989 parliamentary elections

Deputy for the District No. 23 (Las Condes, Vitacura and Lo Barnechea), Santiago Metropolitan Region^[14]

Candidate	Party	Votes	%	Result
Evelyn Matthei Fornet	RN	79,595	42.32	Deputy
Eliana Caraball Martínez	DC	49,961	26.56	Deputy
Joaquín Lavín Infante	UDI	36,379	19.34
Guido Girardi Lavín	PPD	16,318	8.68
José Miguel Ureta Rojas	ILE	3,772	2.01
Patricio Hidalgo Marín	AN	1,116	0.59
Jorge Martínez Rodríguez	ILF	956	0.51

1993 parliamentary elections

Deputy for District No. 15 (San Antonio), Valparaíso Region^[15]

Candidate	Party	Votes	%	Result
Samuel Venegas Rubio	PDC	30,174	39.85	Deputy
Evelyn Matthei Fornet	ILB	19,572	25.85	Deputy
Gonzalo Yuseff Sotomayor	RN	10,950	14.46
Julio Stuardo González	PS	6,719	8.87
Cosme Caracciolo Alvarez	PC	3,858	5.10
Mireya Baltra Moreno	PC	3,802	5.02
Jorge Blaessinger Lobos	IND	645	0.85

1997 parliamentary elections

Senator for the Circunscription No. 4 (Coquimbo Region)^[16]

Candidate	Party	Votes	%	Result
Jorge Pizarro Soto	PDC	82,598	38.30	Senator
Evelyn Matthei Fornet	ILB	50,281	23.32	Senator
Erich Schnake Silva	PPD	40,728	18.89
Eugenio Munizaga Rodríguez	RN	33,612	15.59
Gonzalo Garcia-Huidobro Severin	PH	8,439	3.91

2005 parliamentary elections

Senator for the Circunscription No. 4 (Coquimbo Region)^[17]

Candidate	Party	Votes	%	Result
Jorge Pizarro Soto	PDC	101,671	40.37	Senator
Evelyn Matthei Fornet	UDI	71,697	28.47	Senator
Jorge Arrate Mac-Niven	PS	48,931	19.43
Arturo Longton Guerrero	RN	12,571	4.99
Luis Aguilera González	PC	10,607	4.21
Joaquín Arduengo Naredo	PH	6,384	2.53