Javier Millay, a libertarian economist, won the presidential election in Argentina with 56% of the votes. As president, he has promised to take a different approach than the state previously implemented. One of his key promises is to close government offices and fully shut down the central bank as part of the “dollarization” process. This move comes in response to hyperinflation that led to an annual inflation rate of 142%. However, it remains unclear how Congress will govern in practice with Millay as president.
Critics question what led to Millay’s rise in Argentine politics, suspecting that it came more as a result of the flaws of Massa, the Minister of Economy in the previous government. Millay is considered eccentric with his love for his four dogs and eccentric hobbies. Despite this, he has been popular with various groups in Argentina because of his criticism and attacks against the country’s leadership. The country has been struggling with economic issues, poverty, and high inflation.
Lev Ari argues that the ability to control the entire economy by the government has resulted in a gap between the rich and poor in Argentina. The country’s past attempts at stabilizing its economy have failed, and this government continues to struggle to handle its economic crisis. Millay’s party only received 37 seats out of 257 seats in Congress, while The Union for Motherland still holds many seats. Prof Rein believes that Argentina’s economic problems tie back to its role as a food producer, reliance on capital outside of the financial system, and Peronism’s collapse.
Millay appears to tap directly into real problems facing Argentina through his promises while creating a narrative suggesting that current leadership does not represent people’s will and their policies have failed. Now that he is president
/cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com/reuters/2YRSG4PDMBK6VIGZR3ZS6XYA7Y.jpg)
