Kenneth Pugh

Kenneth Peter Pugh Olavarría (Valparaíso, 22 October 1959) is a retired vice admiral of the Chilean Navy, a naval engineer, and a Chilean politician. He has served as a Senator of the Republic for the Valparaíso Region during the 2018–2026 legislative period. His public service has been characterized by specialization in defense matters, cybersecurity and the digital transformation of the State. the Personal Data Protection Law, the State Digital Transformation Law, and the modernization of legislation on computer crimes.

He also chaired standing Senate committees, promoted international cooperation initiatives in technological matters, and has been a speaker in public policies related to cyberspace and digital sovereignty.

Biography He is the son of Kenneth Pugh Gillmore, a Chilean of British descent, and María Teresa Olavarría Sanhueza. He is married to María Victoria Valdovinos Izue and is the father of four children: Kenneth, Duncan, Stephen, and María Victoria. He later commanded the missile boat Papudo (1997), the anti-submarine frigate Ministro Zenteno (2002), and the fleet flagship, the destroyer Blanco Encalada (2003).

Chahuán's strong vote total contributed to Pugh also securing a seat with more than 14,000 votes, in accordance with the D'Hondt method. , enacted in 2018; the State Digital Transformation Law (2019), which digitized administrative procedures; the Computer Crimes Law, enacted in 2022 to align Chilean legislation with the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime; the Fintech Law of 2022; the Cybersecurity Framework Law, enacted in 2024, which created the National Cybersecurity Agency and established obligations for critical infrastructure; and the Personal Data Protection Law, also enacted in 2024, which modernized the privacy regime and created a specialized supervisory authority.

For the 2025 parliamentary elections, he ruled out seeking re-election for the Valparaíso Region.