Edmundo Eluchans Malherbe

Jorge Edmundo Eluchans Malherbe (23 August 1926 – 13 April 1993) was a Chilean lawyer, businessman, guild leader, and politician, member of the United Conservative Party (PCU).

He served as a Deputy of the Republic representing the 6th Departmental Grouping (Valparaíso and Quillota) for two consecutive legislative terms between 1957 and 1965, holding the post of First Vice President of the Chamber during his final term.^[1]

Eluchans was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 23 August 1926, the son of Domingo Eluchans Irigaray and Celia Malherbe Wasserfall.^[1]

He studied at the Colegio de los Sagrados Corazones de Santiago and later at the Instituto Rafael Ariztía in Quillota (Marist Brothers). He went on to study law at the Sagrados Corazones School of Valparaíso, earning his law degree on 6 January 1949 with a thesis entitled «Christian Sociology: Essay on Political Philosophy». During his studies he received the “Eduardo Lobos Prize” for academic excellence.^[1]

He married Florencia Urenda Zegers, with whom he had seven children, including the future deputy Edmundo Eluchans Urenda.^[1]

Eluchans taught civic education and political economy at the Instituto Rafael Ariztía, and later served as full professor of constitutional law and civil law at the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso between 1949 and 1951.^[1]

From 1949 he was an editor of the newspaper La Unión in Valparaíso, while also practicing law privately.^[1]

In business, he was president of Covalpo, Autoval, the board of Banco del Trabajo, and its real-estate branch. He also served as director of «Frutera Sudamericana», «Carburo y Metalurgia», and the insurance companies «Árabe» and «Galénica». He was legal counsel for Inmobiliaria Torre Las Condes S.A. and a member of the Automóvil Club.^[1] By the late 1970s he held 9 percent of the shares in Banco de Constitución.^[2]

Eluchans became politically active while at university, serving as president of the Law Students’ Center (1946–1947) and, in 1947, as president of the Confederation of University Students of Valparaíso.^[1] A member of the United Conservative Party (PCU), he later became provisional president of the party’s youth wing and departmental president in Valparaíso.^[1]

In the 1957 parliamentary elections he was elected Deputy for the 6th Departmental Grouping (Valparaíso and Quillota) for the 1957–1961 legislature. He served on the Permanent Commissions on Constitution, Legislation and Justice, Mining and Industry, and Foreign Affairs. He also took part in the Plenary Conference of the Inter-Parliamentary Union held in Rio de Janeiro (1958–1959).^[1]

Re-elected for the 1961–1965 term, he served as First Vice President of the Chamber from 12 May 1964 to 15 May 1965. During that period he remained on the Constitution, Legislation and Justice Commission and acted as deputy member of the Finance Commission. He also participated in the Mixed Parliamentary Advisory Committee (1957) and the Special Petroleum Committee (1963). Among his legislative initiatives was Law No. 15,173 (12 March 1963) establishing the Viña del Mar Children’s and Cradles Hospital, a bill he authored.^[1]

He ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in the complementary election of 7 March 1965 in Valparaíso and Aconcagua, losing to Benjamín Prado Casas of the Christian Democratic Party.

After the return to democracy in 1989, he again sought a Senate seat as an independent within the Democracia y Progreso coalition for the Fifth District (Cordillera Region, Valparaíso), but was not elected.^[3][1]

Eluchans died in Santiago on 13 April 1993.^[1]

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