<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/23/argentina-javier-milei-presidential-election>
"Leading Latin American leftists have celebrated the thwarting of Javier
Milei’s attempt to claim a first-round victory in Argentina’s presidential
election after the far-right populist was beaten by his centrist rival Sergio
Massa.
Milei, an oddball economist who has called climate change a “socialist lie” and
the pope “a lefty son of a bitch”, had hoped an explosion of anti-establishment
rage would catapult him into the presidency on Sunday as 27 million
Argentinians turned out to vote amid the country’s worst economic crisis in
decades.
But Milei, who was widely regarded as the election frontrunner, was pipped to
the post by the Peronist finance minister Massa, who received 36.6% of votes to
Milei’s 29.9%. The two men will now face off in a second-round showdown on 19
November.
Colombia’s leftist president, Gustavo Petro, led the celebration of Milei’s
unexpected setback, which dealt a bitter blow to members of the global far
right hoping a Milei victory would allow them to make a powerful show of
strength.
“Argentina has defeated barbarism,” Petro tweeted. “This is the time of hope.”
Brazil’s leftwing president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, also commemorated a
result most polls had failed to foresee. “Formidable, my friend,” Lula
reportedly wrote in a private message to Massa, according to the Argentinian
newspaper Clarín.
Lula’s chief foreign policy adviser, Celso Amorim, called the result one of
“relief and renewed hope” although he cautioned that “the struggle is not
over”. Paulo Pimenta, Lula’s communications minister, tweeted: “Long live
democracy!”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
