Chile’s new president is a diehard Taylor Swift stan – and proud
Gabriel Boric, paid-up Swiftie. (Twitter)
Gabriel Boric, Chile’s new president, is a huge Taylor Swift fan – and proud.
After news of his victory in the presidential election broke on Monday (20 December), the internet was awash with footage revealing Boric to be a dyed in the wool Swiftie.
One video shows him pulling out a picture of the Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter after being asked by fans if he’s a Swiftie.
? | Gabriel Boric, the new president of Chile pulled a photo of Taylor Swift out of his pocket when asked by fans if he was a Swiftie ??pic.twitter.com/q4343KnZmV
— Taylor Swift News ? (@TSwiftNZ) December 20, 2021
Showing his faithful dedication to Tay-Tay, Boric has also been pictured with a christ-like image of Swift. Another shot shows Boric wearing the iconic Taylor Swift Cardigan: promotional merch created for Swift’s Folklore album. The cosy knitwear was sent exclusively to celebrities from Tan France of Queer Eye, to Stranger Things actor Millie Bobby Brown and singer Jennifer Hudson, before becoming available to the public.
swifties ruling the world #BoricPresidentedeChile pic.twitter.com/ToYV6JZ0Mc
— Taylor Throwbacks? (@ThrowbackTaylor) December 20, 2021
There’s even a recording of the 35-year-old politician playing one of Swift’s tracks on Instagram live.
For example this video of him listening to Taylor Swift on Instagram Live pic.twitter.com/iN0XdJUk0H
— Populism Updates (@PopulismUpdates) December 17, 2021
The news has sent the Swift fandom into a frenzy. One fan page declared Boric’s presidency as the first step towards “Swifties ruling the world”.
Gabriel Boric pledges to transform Chile and boost LGBT+ rights
The leftist former student leader has pledged to improve LGBT+ inclusion as well as gender equality and reproductive rights in Chile.
Boric was victorious against rightwing opponent José Antonio Kast, whom many LGBT+ Chileans feared would win. A devout catholic, Kast opposes same-sex marriage, advocates for a blanket ban on abortion, and rejects “gender ideology.” It has also come to light that Kast’s father was a member of the Nazi party.
After winning with 56 per cent of the final vote, Boric will now push for action on climate change, seek to address economic inequality, and overhaul the country’s Pinochet-era private pension system. The task ahead of the young new leader is not an easy one – he’ll have to work with a Congress that is divided along political lines to bring his vision to life.
Since winning, Boric has taken to twitter with a number of uplifting messages. “Hope beats fear,” he said in one post.
He acknowledged the challenges ahead in his victory speech, while also remaining hopeful:
“The times ahead will not be easy … Only with social cohesion, re-finding ourselves and sharing common ground will we be able to advance towards truly sustainable development – which reaches every Chilean.”
