Natalia Castillo

Natalia Valentina Castillo Muñoz (born 1 August 1982) is a Chilean politician who served as deputy.

Early life and education Castillo was born on August 1, 1982, in the commune of Puente Alto, in Santiago, Chile. She is the daughter of José Castillo Gajardo and Rosa Castillo Díaz.

She is married to Roberto Rodríguez López and is the mother of two children.

She completed her primary education at several schools, including Escuela Mayo, Colegio Alberto Blest Gana, and Colegio Los Pensamientos. She completed her secondary education at Liceo Carmela Carvajal de Prat.

In 2001, she entered the Law program at the University of Chile, graduating in 2006. Her undergraduate thesis was titled Prestaciones asistenciales: análisis, sistematización y breve visión comparada. She was admitted to the bar on August 28, 2009.

Between 2011 and 2012, she completed a Diploma in Substantive Criminal Law (Special Part) at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. In 2012, she completed a Diploma in Labor Law Reform at the Alberto Hurtado University. She has also participated in various professional specialization courses, including “Corruption crimes and criminal liability of legal persons” and “Precautionary measures.”

Professional career In 2008, Castillo began working at the Council of State Defense as a prosecutor, where she served until 2012. During this period, she worked in both the Criminal Prosecutor’s Office and the Labor Office.

She later joined the law firm Rivadeneira, Colombara y Zegers as a criminal defense attorney, where she remained until 2014, when she resigned to practice law independently.

Political career Castillo began her political activity during her secondary school years at Liceo Carmela Carvajal, when she joined the Communist Youth of Chile. She also participated in the Federation of Secondary Students of Santiago (FESES) as a representative of her school.

In 2014, she joined Revolución Democrática. She participated in the Political Reforms Commission and later in the Territorial Action team.

In 2016, she ran as a candidate for mayor of La Granja, obtaining 2,775 votes, equivalent to 13.2% of the total votes cast.

In 2017, she was nominated as a candidate for the Chamber of Deputies of Chile representing Revolución Democrática for the 10th electoral district, which includes the communes of La Granja, Macul, Providencia, Ñuñoa, Santiago, and San Joaquín. In the parliamentary elections of that year, she was elected deputy for the 2018–2022 term as part of the Broad Front coalition, obtaining 4,453 votes, equivalent to 1.02% of the total valid votes.

On December 3, 2020, she announced her resignation from Revolución Democrática together with Deputy Pablo Vidal.

On December 30, 2020, together with former members of Revolución Democrática Pablo Vidal, Vlado Mirosevic, Alejandro Bernales, former Minister of the Environment Marcelo Mena, and former Undersecretary of Education Valentina Quiroga, she helped form a new center-left political platform known as Nuevo Trato.

In August 2021, she registered her candidacy for re-election to the Chamber of Deputies, this time for the 9th electoral district of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, running as an independent candidate on a seat supported by the Liberal Party of Chile within the Nuevo Pacto Social coalition. In the parliamentary elections held on November 21, 2021, she obtained 4,139 votes, equivalent to 1.24% of the total valid votes, and was not re-elected.