Katherine Martorell

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Martorell and the second or maternal family name is Awad.
Katherine Martorell
Expert Commissioner of the Constitutional Council
In office
6 March 2023 – 7 November 2023
Undersecretary for Crime Prevention
In office
11 March 2018 – 17 August 2021
Appointed bySebastián Piñera
Preceded byOscar Carrasco
Succeeded byMaría José Gómez
Councilwoman of Quinta Normal
In office
6 December 2012 – 6 December 2016
Personal details
Born (1982-01-18) 18 January 1982
Santiago, Chile
PartyNational Renewal
SpouseClaudio Pontillo
Alma mater
OccupationPolitician
ProfessionLawyer

Katherine Denisse Martorell Awad (Santiago, 18 January 1982)[1] is a lawyer and politician from Chile, affiliated with Renovación Nacional (RN).[1] She served as Undersecretary for Crime Prevention during the second administration of President Sebastián Piñera from 2018 to 2021, and was previously a councillor for Quinta Normal between 2012 and 2016.[2]

She has served on the board of the party’s policy institute, the Instituto Libertad,[3] and currently presides over RN’s Supreme Tribunal, the body responsible for upholding internal statutes and party discipline. In that capacity, she announced the formal nomination of Evelyn Matthei as the party’s presidential candidate in January 2025.[4]

The Chilean press often places her within the party’s liberal wing — associated with a pragmatic economic outlook and moderate social stance.[5] This identification has been reinforced by her close political relationship with former President Piñera.[5]

Family and education

Her maternal family is of Arab descent; her grandparents, children of Syrian immigrants, met within the Arab community of Quinta Normal, married, and founded the “Grandes Almacenes Awad.”[6] She was born in Santiago de Chile, daughter of Agustín Manuel Martorell Correa, of Catalan descent, and Angeli del Carmen Awad Awad.[7] Her parents met while working at Codelco and separated when she was eight years old.[6]

She completed her primary studies at Colegio Universitario Inglés and her secondary education at Colegio Carmen Teresiano, both in Santiago.[6]

She read law at the Universidad Central de Chile (UCEN),[5] later earning a master’s degree in regulatory law from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.[8]

On 25 June 2022 she married Claudio Pontillo,[9][10] a public administrator and law graduate.[11]

Political career

Martorell began her public service as legal director and head of community development (DIDECO) at the Municipality of Conchalí. She later served as councillor for Quinta Normal between 2012 and 2016,[5] and ran for parliament in the 2017 parliamentary elections for District 9 of the Santiago Metropolitan Region.[8]

From 2011 to 2014 — during the first Piñera administration — she served as head of the Territorial Management Unit at the Undersecretariat of Telecommunications (Subtel), where she coordinated cross-government programmes on gender, decentralisation, disability, and indigenous affairs.[8]

Between 2015 and 2017 she worked in the private sector as Director of Sustainability and Communities at the telecommunications company Entel.[8]

Undersecretary (2018–2021)

On 11 March 2018, under the second Piñera administration, she was appointed Undersecretary for Crime Prevention, becoming the first woman to hold the post.[5]

During her tenure she oversaw the creation of the Comisaría Virtual (Virtual Police Station), a digital platform enabling citizens to process administrative matters with Carabineros without attending a police station in person.[12] The platform, launched in 2019, was part of a modernisation drive to digitise public safety services.[12]

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the platform became a central instrument of national coordination: all movement permits during lockdown were issued through Comisaría Virtual. Within months it evolved from a bureaucratic tool into one of the State’s most widely used online interfaces, registering millions of daily transactions.[13][3]

Public profile: 2021–

Martorell resigned her post on 17 August 2021 to join the presidential campaign of Sebastián Sichel as spokesperson for the Chile Vamos coalition.[4] Following the first-round results, she later joined the José Antonio Kast campaign team in the area of public security.[14]

Between April 2022 and December 2024, she served in the administration of Providencia Mayor Evelyn Matthei, advising on legal and public safety matters.[15] Known for her composed and pragmatic style, she has remained a visible public figure, frequently appearing as a commentator on security and governance.[16][17]

On 25 January 2023, she was appointed by the Senate as a member of the xpert Commission, tasked with advising the Constitutional Council in drafting a new constitutional text.[18][19] Within the commission she focused on public security, institutional order, and strengthening autonomous bodies.[20][21]

References

  1. ^ a b "Who are the undersecretaries appointed by Sebastián Piñera for his government". Emol. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  2. ^ "Who is Katherine Martorell? The Undersecretary for Crime Prevention leading Chile's COVID-19 response". RedGol. 27 March 2020. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Virtual Police Station recorded 3.6 million visits and 1.1 million permits in 48 hours". Radio Bío-Bío. 16 May 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  4. ^ a b "Katherine Martorell leaves government to join Sichel's campaign". Cooperativa.cl. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d e "What to know about Katherine Martorell and her new role as spokesperson for Sichel's campaign". Ex-Ante. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "Katherine Martorell: "I would like to be a constituent"". Litoral Press. 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  7. ^ Profile at Infoprobidad. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  8. ^ a b c d "Government of Chile – Ministry of the Interior and Public Security". Gob.cl. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  9. ^ "Katherine Martorell marries: Christian Pino shares photos of the celebration". Radio Bío-Bío. 26 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  10. ^ "Former undersecretary Katherine Martorell marries with several politicians in attendance". T13. 26 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  11. ^ Transparency Act, Presidency of Chile, 2014
  12. ^ a b "Virtual Police Station to streamline citizens' procedures and free police resources". Gob.cl. 27 June 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  13. ^ "Virtual Police Station issued 94 million permits in 2020". La Tercera. 4 January 2021. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  14. ^ "Former Sichel spokesperson Katherine Martorell joins Kast's campaign eight days before election". Radio Bío-Bío. 10 December 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  15. ^ "Former officials reinvent themselves: Chadwick becomes dean at USS and Martorell joins Matthei's team in Providencia". La Tercera. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  16. ^ "Katherine Martorell's public life: relationships, family and career". As.com. 22 September 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
  17. ^ "Katherine Martorell's role on the Expert Commission: security and institutional order". T13. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
  18. ^ Nelson Quiroz (25 January 2023). "Expert Commission: Senate approves list of 12 experts for the constitutional process". ADN Radio Chile. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  19. ^ "Katherine Martorell joins Matthei's team in Providencia". La Tercera. 26 April 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
  20. ^ "Katherine Martorell (RN expert): "Security must be a central theme — too often it is viewed through a punitive lens"". La Tercera. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
  21. ^ "Senate appoints 24 members to the Expert Commission for the constitutional process". Emol. 25 January 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
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