José Luis Infante Larraín (31 January 1907 – 7 November 1997) was a Chilean politician who served as a minister.
Early life He was the son of landowner Luis Infante Cerda, who served as mayor of Maipú, and Carmela Larraín Bulnes. Through his father, he was a descendant of José Miguel Infante, while through his mother he was a descendant of former president Manuel Bulnes. He attended the Deutsche Schule Santiago.
Infante joined the Conservative Party at a young age. He also studied law at the University of Chile, completing his degree thesis, Ley núm. 4533 de impuesto a las herencias, donaciones y personas jurídicas, in 1929.
Political career In September 1935, at the age of 27, Infante was among the founders of the Cooperativa Agrícola Lechera Santiago Ltda. (CALS) and became one of its leaders.
That same year, he was elected mayor of Maipú for the first time. At the time, Maipú was a largely rural community in Santiago Province. He continued to win municipal elections through 1971, although on several occasions he did not become mayor despite receiving the most votes in the commune. As mayor and municipal councillor, he spent a total of 40 years in Maipú's municipal government, including 27 years as mayor. He was initially a member of the Conservative Party and joined the National Party in 1966.
Projects carried out during his years in municipal government included the creation of the SMAPA municipal water utility in 1942, a local public transport service, a municipal swimming pool, and the Liceo Municipal de Maipú (now the Liceo Municipal Alcalde Gonzalo Pérez Llona) in 1962.
Avenida Pajaritos was also fully paved during this period. While he was mayor, Maipú twice hosted the Campeonato Nacional de Rodeo, in 1960 and 1961. The Feria Internacional de Santiago (FISA) began to be held in the commune in 1963, and the Templo Votivo de Maipú was inaugurated during his time in office. His administration also oversaw the beginning of industrial development in Maipú, particularly in the area now known as the Cerrillos industrial district.
Infante was a member and officer of the National Agricultural Society. He also served as president of the Asociación de Canales del Maipo from 1945 to 1973, when he resigned after the Popular Unity government intervened in the organisation.
In 1951, while a member of the Conservative Party, Infante was appointed Minister of Economy and Commerce by President Gabriel González Videla. He served for seven months, leaving office in February 1952.
Infante left the mayoralty in 1975. Although he had been an elected municipal councillor, he had been appointed mayor by the military junta in 1973.
He then retired from public life and died in 1997 at the age of 90. His body lay in repose at the Templo Votivo, and his funeral was held on 19 November 1997 at the Cementerio Católico in Santiago.
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