Argentina’s presidential election race has an unpredictable X factor: Javier Milei, a fiery far-right populist who has emerged as the biggest winner in Sunday’s primary election.
The 52-year-old politician has exploited people’s disenchantment with the traditional political establishment, which has failed to address the perennial economic crisis in the Latin American nation.
An admirer of former US President Donald Trump, Milei with tousled hair, who often sports leather jackets and sings rock songs at his boisterous political rallies, wants to purge politics of what he calls “thieves”.
The libertarian economist and author has proposed to dollarise the economy, shutter the central bank and shut down some ministries to shrink the state in steps to fix Argentina’s economy, which faces high inflation and currency devaluation amid dwindling reserves and a looming debt bomb.
Milei will be the frontrunner in the October presidential elections with centre-right coalition candidate Patricia Bullrich and the ruling coalition candidate Economy Minister Sergio Massa trailing in second and third place respectively.
In a format that is unique in the region, Argentinians voted on Sunday for their favourite among 22 presidential candidates, with anti-establishment Milei taking the top spot at more than 30 percent with 93 percent of votes counted.
“Today we took the first step toward the reconstruction of Argentina,” Milei said celebrating the results. “A different Argentina is impossible with the same people as always.”
Milei, who has been a lawmaker in the lower house of Argentina’s Congress since 2021, did not have a competitor in the presidential primary of his Liberty Advances party.
Bullrich, 67, had about 28 percent of the vote and 51-year-old lawyer and incumbent minister Massa was in third with about 27 percent.
Deeply unpopular President Alberto Fernandez is not seeking re-election as year-on-year inflation runs at 115 percent, poverty has soared and the value of the peso has plummeted.
Who is Javier Milei?
Milei has shot from relative obscurity a few years ago to now polling at one-third of the vote. His combative, rock-style rallies appeal to voters angry at high inflation and rising poverty.
“Milei is a phenomenon,” said Benjamin Gedan, director of the Latin America and Argentina programmes at Washington-based think tank the Wilson Center, adding that his rise had rattled the two main political blocs – the governing Peronist coalition, now called Union por la Patria, or Union for the Homeland, and conservative opposition bloc, called Juntos por el Cambio, or Together for Change.
“His plague-on-both-your-houses message resonates among voters fed up with traditional political parties. And there are legions of these voters.”
In his closing campaign event this week, Milei rocked into an arena, singing and surrounded by cheering fans. He railed against the political elite who he called “robbers” taking money out of voters’ pockets.
“We are coming to defend against the looters of this system, which only benefits the political thieves,” he shouted at the joyful crowd as they chanted “freedom, freedom,” a reference to his party’s name La Libertad Avanza.
What are his policies?
Milei has pledged to “blow up” the political status quo, shutter the central bank, dollarise the economy and massively shrink the state – ideas that have resonated with many voters, especially young voters, after years of economic decline.
A former small-time rock musician and athlete, Milei opposes abortion and supports gun rights. He has criticised worker-friendly labour laws as a “cancer,” said the state is the “basis of all problems,” and praised US gangster Al Capone as a hero.
Milei’s rise reflects a wider regional trend in recent years that has seen Latin American politicians outside the mainstream and pledging to break up the status quo gain prominence in Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Chile.
“People are fed up with politicians,” said Adriano Gabriel Zoccola, a 31-year-old lawyer from Buenos Aires who supports Milei because of his economic proposals and plans to slash government spending and cut the number of ministries.
“If Argentina is going to have real change, something completely different has to emerge. I think that Javier is the right person,” added Zoccola, who said he had previously voted for Together for Change.
Opponents say Milei’s proposals are unrealistic. That includes the plan to dollarise the economy, something most Argentines oppose despite the rapid depreciation of the peso currency and high inflation. A dollar-peso peg introduced for similar reasons in the 1990s brought short-term benefits but ended in an ugly devaluation.
Successive governments have failed to address the structural issues facing the economy, as it has defaulted on its loans to International Monetary Fund (IMF) several times.
The current crisis was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which badly affected its economy as food and energy prices went up.
At Milei’s electoral headquarters in downtown Buenos Aires, party leaders were ecstatic while people celebrated outside, expressing optimism that their candidate’s support would only grow in the run-up to October 22 election.
“I like his ideas about freedom. His ideas don’t scare me. People are free to choose what they want,” said Orlando Sanchez, 26, a retail worker.
“People are clearly tired of politics, being constantly lied to.”
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
