Right-Wing Chilean Presidential Candidate’s Father Was Reportedly A Nazi
The German-born father of Chilean presidential candidate Jose Antonio Kast was reportedly a Nazi during World War II, according to a recently discovered wartime ID card.
The document found in Germany’s Federal Archive appears to confirm that Kast’s father, Michael Kast, was a member of the Nazi party, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.
This is something Jose Kast has repeatedly denied. Instead, he said his father was forced to enlist in the German army as a young man during the fight against the Allies but was not an actual member of the Nazi party.
“When there is a war and [military] enrollment is mandatory, a 17- or 18-year-old doesn’t have the option to say, ‘I’m not going,’ because they will be court-martialed and shot to death the very next day,” Joe Kast said on social media, the AP noted.
However, the new document revealed that Michael Kast joined the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, or the Nazi party, in September 1942.He then emigrated to Chile in the 1950′s and became a successful businessman. Michael Kast died in 2014.
While the Federal Archive was not able to confirm that the ID belonged to the presidential candidate’s father, the date and place of birth are a match, according to the AP.
The copy of the ID was posted on Twitter by Chilean journalist Mauricio Weibel Barahona.
This news has contradicted what Jose Kast has said in the past. While he is correct that military service was mandatory, joining the Nazi party was not.
Jose Kast, 55, is a far-right candidate running against leftist congressman Gabriel Boric as they head towards the Dec. 19 elections. Recent polls show Boric is slightly ahead of Jose Kast.
Jose Kast has often spoken highly of military dictator Augusto Pinochet and has drawn comparisons to former U.S. President Donald Trump and current Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
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