Second Round of Elections in Argentina: Radical Bullrich endorses Milei against Peronista Massa

 

Lider Radical Patricia Bullrich distances herself from two sectors of the alliance that supported her candidacy in the first round of elections to reject Peronista (Justicialista) candidate Sergio Massa (Argentinian Economics Minister) and support Javier Milei. 

Cristina Bullrich said she could not possible support Sergio Massa that she responsabilizes for the state of the economy in Argentina.

Her support for Javier Milei keeps the contest wide open. She got 24% of the vote in the first round of elections. Other political leaders have shown their allegiance of one of the two remaining Presidential Candidates. Divisions in Argentina spread across national borders and Argentina is one of two most powerful players in Mercosur. It is usually said that if Argentina sneezes Uruguay catches a cold.

In Uruguay, the political crisis surrounding the award of a Uruguayan passport to a well known drug trafficker is rocking the ruling coalition headed by President Luis Alberto Lacalle Pou of the Partido National - one of the two conservative parties that make up the ruling coalition. The Opposition represented by Frente Amplio (Broad Front) plans to focus the heat on President Luis Alberto Lacalle Pou to reveal how he knew about the affair. At this moment in time, Cabildo Abierto - member of the ruling coalition - has expressed doubts about remaing as member of the coalition.

Everything in Argentina and in Uruguay is touch and go. A return of the Frente Amplio is not unthinkable if the ruling coalition falls apart. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has publicly endorsed Sergio Massa and is ideologically closer to Frente Amplio. It must be said that Javier Milei has stated that he wants Argentina to leave Mercosur. So this is more than a second round of a Presidential Election in Argentina. The survival of the Mercosur is at stake and relationships inside the bloc and outside the bloc could be affected by what happens in the next fews days in Argentina.

Allende before, Lula next

 

In the 1970s, many in the left celebrated the arrival of Salvador Allende. 11 September 1973 ended with bloodshed and the rest is history.

I happened to be in the River Plate region at the time. I was told about the imminent military coup in Chile and was even told when and how it was going to happen.

There are different versions about Salvador Allende's death: one version of events was that he killed himself not to be arrested and another version is that he was killed when he was still at La Moneda Palace. It makes no difference. The fact is that that put an end to his life and to his government.

This is Lula's second coming and this time the difference between his party and the opposition is less than 1 per cent of the vote. This means that opposition in Parliament will be fierce. As soon as Lula tries to implement any policy that goes against the flow, the transit of any bill through Parliament will be traumatic. 

When Latin American countries go left, alarm bells start ringing in the US State Department and like it happened in 1973, the CIA and others will have already made contingency plans to deal with governments that are seen as a security threat to the USA.

In Argentina, the second most important member of Mercosur, the situation is unbearable. Neither Radicales nor Justicialistas have been able to bring things under control. Indebtedness, galloping inflation in Argentina has led Uruguay to take urgent measures to curb importation of goods coming from Argentina as a massive influx would endanger Uruguay's own economy.

What happens in Chile? Well, just a few days ago a Referendum was called to try and reform Pinochet's Constitution and there were not enough votes to change the Constitution. The fact that this happens many years after the end of the military regime tells you, without a shadow of a doubt, that the country is very much divided. And what happens in Venezuela? Let us remember that Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Venezuela are members of Mercosur. With Lula at the helm, will Brazil get closer to Venezuela and Cuba? Left-wing hope could well lead to left-wing tragedy.