In Argentina, voters ready to turn the page of the era Mauricio Macri

With a disappointing economic record, the center-right head of state leaves in a bad position for the presidential election of October 27.

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The outgoing Argentine head of state, Mauricio Macri (left), during the debate for the presidential election, Santa Fe, October 13.
The outgoing Argentine head of state, Mauricio Macri (left), during the debate for the presidential election, Santa Fe, October 13. Agustin Marcarian / REUTERS

"Know, Mr. President, that when you finish your term, you will leave behind 5 million additional poor people", tackle Alberto Fernandez. The center-left candidate at the head of a large Peronist coalition and favorite of the Argentine presidential election, scheduled for October 27, did not spare Mauricio Macri (center right) Sunday, October 13, during the first debate organized between the six men candidates for the election. The current Argentinian president, whose features are marked by four years of a difficult mandate, is in a bad position for the poll: recent polls give him up to 20 points behind Fernandez.

"We thought restoring the economy would be easier"recognizes Mauricio Macri, on the stage of the amphitheater of the University of Santa Fe (central Argentina), where the debate was organized. Before insuring: "But we are getting ready to return to growth! "

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Nestor (who did not communicate his name), engineer who followed the debate on television, shrugs: "No one believes in his promises. " This Argentinian of about fifty years was " full of hope " when he voted in 2015 for Mr. Macri. "He promised to end corruption. "

At the time, Argentina emerged from twelve years of government Kirchner – with Nestor Kirchner (2003-2007), then his wife, Cristina Kirchner (2007-2015). After a period of economic recovery following the serious crisis of 2001, growth stagnated from the beginning of 2010, and many Argentineans get tired of the invasive personality of their president. Today candidate for the vice presidency alongside Alberto Fernandez, Mme Kirchner is indicted, including for corruption, in thirteen cases.

"Lack of investment"

"Cristina had become arrogant during her second term", asserts Eva, 31 years old. This journalist from a poor suburb of the capital was disappointed by the Kirchnerist management of the province of Buenos Aires: "The lack of investment in infrastructure and public services was shocking. Hospitals lacked everything. "

For the sociologist Gabriel Vommaro, "Macri benefited at the beginning of his mandate from the support of a hard core of upper middle-class voters, but also Argentineans without a political label who expected tangible results." 2017 was precisely a year of economic growth, during which Mauricio Macri launched major public works projects and where his government coalition emerged victorious from the mid-term elections.

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