Chile's 1833 constitution institutionalizes the "Portalian State".One…

Chile's 1833 constitution institutionalizes the "Portalian State".

One of the most durable charters ever devised in Latin America, the Portalian constitution lasts until 1925.

The constitution concentrates authority in the national government—more precisely, in the hands of the president, who is elected by a tiny minority.

The chief executive can serve two consecutive five-year terms, then pick a successor.

Although Congress has significant budgetary powers, it is overshadowed by the president, who appoints provincial officials.

The constitution also creates an independent judiciary, guarantees inheritance of estates by primogeniture, and installs Catholicism as the state religion.

In short, it establishes an autocratic system under a republican veneer.