This week, amidst a cheering crowd of 5,000 people at the presidential palace in Santiago, Chile, Michelle Bachelet, 62, got sworn in as the president. Meanwhile United States vice president Joe Biden, and presidents and leaders of Latin America looked on.

The new president won in December by the widest margin in eight decades of presidential elections. The 2014 swearing-in day also featured the first time for a woman in two centuries to assume the presidency of the Senate. The President of the Chilean Senate, Senator Isabel Allende Bussi, placed the red, white and blue sash on Bachelet's shoulders.

President Bachelet, a moderate socialist, is the first female president of Chile, but this is her second term as president. Bachelet was also president from 2006-2010. During her time off after 2010, however, Bachelet was not sitting on her hands. By September of the same year, she became the Under-Secretary General and Executive Director for UN Women.

Bachelet is separated with three children and a former pediatrician; her main objective during her current campaign was to combat inequality.

Bachelet's political campaign that got her elected was similar to that of President Barack Obama's, The Washington Times notes. Bachelet's focused much of her attention on the income gap between the rich and the poor, as well as education reform.

Bachelet's "New Majority" coalition also helped get her elected. The New Majority is in fact a programmatic and political agreement among Left parties, and the Center parties such as socialist parties, communist parties, Christian Democratic parties (the biggest party group among them); and Social Democratic parties such as Party for Democracy, ABC News reports. More movements that helped Bachelet get elected include the street activists and former student leaders.


Both Obama and Biden openly supported Bachelet's election. The White House released a fact sheet on their website solidifying the United States and Chile's relationship. The White House emphasizes the "long-standing" alliance and close ties that both countries have had. The White House also highlights the Free Trade Agreement; since 2013, Chile has been the US's 29th largest goods trading partner overall, and the fourth largest export partner in the Americas. Chile is the top exporter of copper, has a fast growing economy, and low unemployment and inflation. The Trans-Pacific Partnership that both countries have was also noted as well as the Multilateral Issues. Chile has become the 38th country to participate in the US waiver program and has promoted "Visa Waiver" as of Feb. 28 of this year.

Currently, there are more than 3,000 United States students studying in Chile and more than 2,000 Chileans at American universities, The White House reports.

Bussi and Bachelet both have a legacy that is woven into Chile's history. Allende Bussi is the daughter of ousted President Salvador Allende (1970-1973), who was removed by the dictator General Augusto Pinochet. President Allende's loyal general, Alberto Bachelet, was Michelle's father. General Bachelet was captured and tortured by Pinochet. He later died from a heart-attack due to his injuries. Both Michelle and Bussi had to flee Chile with their families. Forty years later both ladies have endured, lived, and can continue the progress of Chile.

Bachelet now has a lot to prove as she runs the country with the backing of the United States and student movements.

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