Communist lawmaker Jeannette Jara and far-right Jose Antonio Kast were set to head to a runoff vote after coming first and second, respectively, in the first round of Chile's presidential election on Sunday.

Neither contender passed the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff slated for December 14.

Boric calls for unity despite polarizing candidates

With 99% of the votes counted, Jara, a 51-year-old communist running on behalf of an eight-party coalition, was on 26.8%, while Kast had acquired 24% of the vote, according to the Servel electoral service.

"Don't let fear harden your hearts," Jara said after she took the lead during the vote count.

Recognizing Jara and Kast as leaders of the eight-candidate field even as results were still coming in, Chile's current president Gabriel Boric expressed hope that "dialogue, respect and love for Chile will prevail over any differences."

Far-right Kast favorite to win presidential runoff

Kast vowed on Sunday to "rebuild" Chile following four years of center-left rule.

Fifty-nine-year-old Kast is tipped to win the run-off, despite polling lower than Jara on Sunday.

Sunday was the first presidential election in Chile since voting has been made mandatory and the registration of voters automatic, with over 15.7 million voters obliged to vote out of a national population of over 18 million. The decision to enforce voting came after years of poor voter turnout.

Edited by: Zac Crellin