The Ministry of the Interior () is the

cabinet-level A cabinet in governing is a group of people with the constitutional or legal task to rule a country or state, or advise a head of state, usually from the executive branch. Their members are known as ministers and secretaries and they are ...

office responsible for

home affairs An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a Ministry (government department), government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law e ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

. It is tasked with "maintaining public order, security and social peace" within the country. The ministry is also responsible for planning, directing, coordinating, executing, controlling, and informing the domestic policies formulated by the

President of Chile The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...

. As the authority in charge of local government, the minister supervises all non-elected regional authorities.

Álvaro Elizalde Álvaro Antonio Elizalde Soto (born 15 October 1969) is a Chilean politician and lawyer. He assumed the office of Ministry General Secretariat of the Presidency on 19 April 2023. He was minister of Michelle Bachelet. On 11 March 2022 to 15 M ...

has served as Minister of the Interior and Public Security since March 4, 2025. His Undersecretary of the Interior is

Luis Cordero Vega Luis Cordero Vega (born 12 August 1972) is a Chilean politician and lawyer currently serving as minister of justice of the administration of President Gabriel Boric. He succeeded Marcela Ríos as minister following her resignation in January 2023 ...

, the Undersecretary of Regional Development is Francisca Perales Flores, and the Undersecretary of Crime Prevention is Carolina Leitao. In the absence of the

president of Chile The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...

(due to travel, death, or other impediment), the Minister of the Interior assumes the role of 'vice president.' However, this is not a true vice-presidential position but rather a designated acting president role, as the post of Vice President of Chile has not existed since 1833.

History

During the first days of the independence movements, the senior "secretary" of the respective Junta functioned as the ''Secretary of Government''. The office was officially established on October 27, 1812, when it was one of the two secretariats created by the Constitutional Norms approved on that date. It was initially named the ''Secretariat of the Interior''. It was abolished in 1814 by the Spanish authorities when, after the

Battle of Rancagua The Battle of Rancagua, also known in Chile as the Disaster of Rancagua, occurred on October 1, 1814, to October 2, 1814, when the Spanish Army under the command of Mariano Osorio defeated the Chilean forces led by Bernardo O’Higgins. This ...

, they reasserted royal power. In 1818, after independence, the secretariat was re-established, but this time as the Ministry of Government (1817–18), later renamed the Ministry of the Interior and Foreign Affairs (1829–71). During this period, its functions typically encompassed the future

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

, which was separated as an independent government administration in 1871. This ministry has undergone several reorganizations throughout its long history, reflected in its various names: *Ministry of Government (1817–18) *Ministry of Government and Foreign Affairs (1818–29) *Ministry of the Interior and Foreign Affairs (1829–71) *Ministry of the Interior (1871–2011) *Ministry of the Interior and Public Security (2011–present) The role of chief of government was unofficially assumed by the Minister of the Interior and Public Security (1891–1925).

List of ministers

''Patria Vieja'' period

Government and foreign affairs

Interior and foreign affairs

Interior

Additional information

Sources

* *

References

External links

Official Website of the Ministry of the Interior of Chile
{{authority control

Interior Interior may refer to: Arts and media * ''Interior'' (Degas) (also known as ''The Rape''), painting by Edgar Degas * ''Interior'' (play), 1895 play by Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck * ''The Interior'' (novel), by Lisa See * Interior de ...

Law enforcement in Chile Chile, Interior Chile, Interior 1812 establishments in the Captaincy General of Chile