Jorge Wachholtz

Jorge Wachholtz Araya (27 June 1889 – 27 March 1981) was a Chilean industrialist, businessman and politician. He served as senator for the northern provinces of Tarapacá and Antofagasta during the 1933–1937 legislative period and previously held executive positions in regional and national administration.

Biography Wachholtz Araya was born in Iquique on 27 June 1889, the son of Máximo Wachholtz and Elvira Araya. He married Inés Mujica.

He studied at the Liceo de Iquique and began his professional career in the nitrate industry of Tarapacá, initially with the firm Sloman and later at the Alianza Nitrate Office, operated by Gibbs & Co. He subsequently engaged in commercial enterprises in Iquique under the firm Wachholtz Hnos., alongside his brothers Máximo and Julio.

The family owned a metallurgical foundry and constructed major industrial infrastructure, including the railway workshops of the Iquique–Pintados line. Wachholtz Araya also acted as representative of Saavedra Bénard and of the Chilean Petroleum Company (COPEC).

Political career Wachholtz Araya militated in the Radical Socialist Party, of which he served as president. He played a prominent role in the presidential campaign of Pedro Aguirre Cerda in northern Chile.

In 1931, he was appointed Intendant of Tarapacá, serving from 30 June 1931 until 19 July 1932.

In 1933, he was elected senator for the First Provincial District of Tarapacá and Antofagasta, serving from 1933 to 1937. This four-year senatorial term resulted from the institutional adjustment following the revolutionary events of June 1932. During his time in the Senate, he served on the Permanent Commission on Government and acted as substitute member of the Permanent Commission on Foreign Relations. He actively sponsored legislation related to the nitrate industry and the development of the northern provinces he represented.

Later activities Following his parliamentary career, Wachholtz Araya held several high-level economic and administrative positions. He served as executive vice president of the Foreign Trade Council from 1 January 1946 to August 1947 and as a director of the Central Bank of Chile between 1947 and 1950.

He was also vice president of the Electro-Siderurgical Company and of the Tarapacá Industrial Fishing Company, as well as director of the Instituto Bioquímico Beta, S.A.

Affiliations Wachholtz Araya was a member of the Universidad Industrial de Iquique, the Club de La Unión of Santiago, the Rotary Club of Iquique, and an associate of the Boy Scouts of Iquique.

He died in Santiago on 27 March 1981.