We’ve been here before. In other words, people in Argentina get frustrated and look to the left for quick solutions. They did it again on Sunday by going left again:
With 97.13% of ballots counted, Mr Fernández had 48.10% of the vote, Argentina’s electoral authority said. Mr Macri had 40.37%. To win in the first round, a candidate needs at least 45% of the vote, or 40% and a 10-point lead over the second-place contestant.
My Argentine friends were not surprised. They saw President Mauricio Macri going down. In fact, some thought that it would be worse.
What happens next? Realistically, not much.
The “center left,” as they like to be called, inherits a nation with a plunging Peso, inflation annualy over 50%, and almost a third of the country living under the poverty line.
So the left had a bad economy to run against and President Macri could not counter their demagoguery.
The new administration will face two major problems come December.
First, there are no quick fixes to the nation’s economic problems.
Second, and more dramatic perhaps, new vice president-elect Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, the former president and widow of another president, carries more ethical baggage than a loaded 747.
So let’s wish the best to our friends in the land of tango. At the same time, there is a reason that most tangos are sad and tragic. As my friend from Buenos Aires said yesterday: “Tenemos tango para llorar y llorar” or “we have tango to cry and cry.”
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