Argentina’s Libertarian Lion Javier Milei, Leading in the Polls, Grows More Confident He Could Win the Presidency

As Argentina’s presidential election nears, supporters of libertarian candidate Javier Milei, who leads in the polls, are growing ever more confident he would win. “Come on, liberals,” they sang on his final public appearance before the weekend presidential election. “On Sunday we have to win.” Clad in a presidential suit and flanked by two Argentine flags, Mr. Milei acted as if he already belongs in the Pink House, as the presidential residence is known. “The Kirchnerism is the crudest caste that we have to banish,” Mr. Milei said in the video, referring to the political movement of the governing left-wing faction. In the meantime, the hashtag #MileiInTheFirstRound became a trending topic on X. Addressing his followers, Mr. Milei used crude language to cheer the crowds, as a growing triumphant sentiment ran high. The stadium of Buenos Aires’s Movistar Arena trembled as followers of Mr. Milei’s Libertarian Party danced to rock music, commemorating the years of the candidate’s youth, when he used to sing in a rock and roll band before starting his economic career. “If we Argentines don’t get involved, the politicians are going to continue ruining our lives,” Mr. Milei said, echoing his critics of the country’s “political caste.” Politicians are “parasites” motivated only by greed, he said. “Argentina has a future, but that future exists if that future is liberal,” Mr. Milei said at the end of his speech, followed by more rock music, to which the candidate danced with his audience for several minutes. Outside the stadium, hats emblazoned with the biblical slogan that became one of Mr. Milei’s official campaign memes, “Las Fuerzas del Cielo” — “The Forces of Heaven” — sell for $4 in representation of one of the libertarian’s main campaign goals: dollarizing the economy. Banners with an American dollar in the background are prominent at election venues. According to several polls, Mr. Milei will win the first round of elections with about 30 to 35 percent of the votes. The right-wing candidate, Patricia Bullrich, and the left-wing contender, Sergio Massa, are each predicted to win between 20 percent and 26 percent of the votes.To win in the first round, a candidate must receive 45 percent of the votes, or 40 percent if the winner’s numbers are more than 10 percentage points ahead of the runner-up. While Mr. Milei is anticipating a first-round victory, data suggest that Argentinians will have to return to the polls in a second round on November 19. Argentina is currently experiencing its worst economic crisis in two decades. Inflation is hovering at about 120 percent annually, and the peso has shed almost two-thirds of its value in the last 12 months. Argentina’s economic minister, the presidential candidate Mr. Massa, traveled to Beijing last week to borrow $6.5 billion in Chinese currency. The money will be used to help Argentinian companies pay for imports and with repayments on loans from the International Monetary Fund. The solution to Argentina’s economic crisis, according to Mr. Milei, is to abolish the institution that he says is the primary cause of Argentina’s inflation — the country’s central bank. A devotee of the Austrian school of economics, Mr. Milei, who casts himself as the libertarian savior of his country, also wants to “chainsaw” public spending and turn to the United States dollar from the Argentinian peso. President Fernandez launched a lawsuit against Mr. Milei last week after the libertarian encouraged Argentinians to get rid of pesos. During an interview, Mr. Milei said Argentinians should not renew their fixed rate deposits as “the peso is the currency issued by the Argentine politician,” using a coarse expression to describe the currency.Following those comments the informal exchange rate closed at 1,025 pesos to the dollar on Tuesday, an increase from 880 pesos on Friday. Mr. Milei is often compared to other disruptive figures, such as President Trump and Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro. Mr. Milei wants to reverse recently-approved abortion laws, which allow women to get an abortion until the 14th week of a pregnancy. One of Mr. Milei’s party candidates for Congress, Lilia Lemoine, is being criticized this week for proposing a bill that eliminates paternity obligations. “It is not fair that a man has to take care of a child he did not want to have,” Ms. Lemoine said in an interview. During the second presidential debate at the beginning of October, Mr. Milei said that while he doesn’t deny climate change, “all those policies that blame humans for climate change are false and only seek to raise funds to finance lazy socialists who write second-rate papers.”

Argentina’s Libertarian Lion Javier Milei, Leading in the Polls, Grows More Confident He Could Win the Presidency

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