Augusto Pinochet’s constitution is finally on its way out, after the October 25 referendum brought a 78 percent vote to replace his regime’s neoliberal charter. But in that vote, Chileans were also asked a second question: “What type of organ should write the new constitution?” Seventy-nine percent preferred it to be written by a constitutional convention, rather than a “mixed” body including sitting MPs.

We already know some things about what will happen next. April 11, 2021 will see an election to appoint 155 members of the constitutional convention; they will draft a document, which Chileans can then approve or reject in an “exit referendum” slated for mid-2022.

Today, the Chilean senate and congress are still defining the rules for these contests. Indeed, this is not a constituent assembly, created from scratch; and it is already clear that the convention will have limitations such as high quorum requirements, a preference for party-political delegates, and even restrictions imposed by the current constitution.