By Clinton Porteous BBC News, Santiago

Bachelet wants to be the first woman to lead Chile

Not only is she a woman, but she calls herself a socialist, and she is a single parent with a 12-year-old daughter and two other grown children.

Chilean society is often portrayed as ultra-conservative dominated by men and the Roman Catholic Church. Only 4% of senators are women and divorce was only introduced last year.

But Ms Bachelet believes this is only part of the picture and Chile is changing - as reflected by her bid for the leadership.

"It is a big honour to have the chance to be the first female president of Chile," she told the BBC News website.

"But what I think is more important is that it means Chile has been changing. We have a mature, democratic society that believes men and women can hold responsibility."

'Everyone should benefit'

The 54-year-old became the sole candidate for the ruling centre-left coalition after another woman, Soledad Alvear, dropped out of the contest in late May.

The coalition, known as Concertacion, has held power since the return of democracy in 1990 and Ms Bachelet says she will carry on the tradition of maintaining strong economic growth.

"We should continue growing economically, that is very important, but we have to make sure that everybody in this country will have the benefits of this growth."

Chile is often described as the economic miracle of Latin America and the economy is believed to have expanded by more than 5% this year.

There were two men standing between Ms Bachelet and the presidential palace.

One, Joaquin Lavin, a Conservative candidate who narrowly lost the last presidential election, was knocked out in the first round on 11 December. The remaining rival is a billionaire businessman, Sebastian Pinera, who entered the race in mid-May after a split in the Conservative Alliance.

Socialist roots

If she wins the election on 15 January, Ms Bachelet will become the fourth president from the Concertacion and arguably the most radical.

She was politicised by the military coup of September 1973 that brought General Augusto Pinochet to power.

I am a socialist, but I wear many hats. I was not a minister of the socialists, I was a minister of all the Chileans. If I am president, I will be president for all the Chileans Michelle Bachelet

Her father was a general in the Air Force who was opposed to the military government and died in prison.

She worked undercover for the Socialist Youth and she was held for weeks with her mother, Angelica, in torture and detention centres before being allowed to flee the country in 1975.

Like the current President Ricardo Lagos, Ms Bachelet is a member of the Chilean Socialist Party, but she seems more willing to discuss her socialist roots.

"I would say I am a socialist, of course, but I wear many hats," she said.

"I was not a minister of the socialists, I was a minister of all the Chileans. And if I am president, I will be president for all the Chileans."

Trained as a doctor, she has been a public figure for just five years after Mr Lagos appointed her to the health portfolio and then defence.

Under Chilean law, he must stand aside after serving one term, giving Ms Bachelet her chance.

During the interview, at her mother's apartment in the Chilean capital of Santiago, she appears relaxed.

Many political analysts say it is her refreshing warmth and personality that has attracted Chilean voters and put her at the top of every major opinion poll.

Pinochet question

But she becomes more serious when she discusses 90-year-old General Pinochet. He is under house arrest, and has been fighting legal battles for years.

He has lost his immunity from prosecution and faces charges of tax fraud and other crimes related to secret multi-million dollar bank accounts, many of them with the Washington-based Riggs Bank

Ms Bachelet says the general is now irrelevant as a political actor. However, under Chilean protocol he would be entitled to a state funeral as a former president. There is a big chance he could die while she is running the country.

"I would say as a president, of course, I would respect all the laws and decrees, but frankly I would say it would be very violent for the Chilean conscience to give a state funeral to someone who has been involved, not only in human rights violation processes, but also a [scandal] like the Riggs Bank."

The interview is about to end, and the most delicate question comes last. It is about her personal life.

"I am a mother of three," she says.

"Right now, I don't have a partner."

She says it was not a problem when she was a minister and it should not be an issue if she becomes president. However, that does not mean she wants to stay single.

"I hope there will come a time when I have time for my children, for my family, and if a boyfriend, better, but otherwise I can live."