Buenos Aires — Argentina’s Economy Minister Sergio Massa will be the only candidate for president for the ruling coalition in the October elections, Unión por la Patria, the new name of the coalition to which the current Argentine president, Alberto Fernández, belongs, announced on Twitter on Friday evening.
“For institutional, political and social responsibility, our coalition has decided to form a unity list that will represent us in the next elections,” states the tweet published by the ruling coalition.
According to the account of the government alliance, the candidate for vice-president will be Agustín Rossi, current chief of the cabinet of Alberto Fernández.
Rossi had launched his own pre-candidacy for president in May.
The new presidential pre-candidate - who has been negotiating a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund to avoid default this month - did not clarify so far whether or not he will remain at the head of the ministry.
During the afternoon, it was reported that Massa had met with Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, at the Senate.
Massa’s press team did not respond to Bloomberg Línea’s requests for comment on the matter.
Moments before the announcement of Massa’s sole candidacy, current president of the Chamber of Deputies, Cecilia Moreau, a Massa supporter, had denied on Twitter that the meeting between the minister and Fernández de Kirchner took place.
Massa’s candidacy means that the pre-candidatures announced by Interior Minister Eduardo “Wado” de Pedro and former governor of the province of Buenos Aires, Daniel Scioli, would be ruled out.
There is still no official information from Unión por la Patria regarding the lists of candidates for senators and deputies.
This afternoon a Whatsapp message from Massa had been leaked, confirmed to this media by his press team, in which he insinuated that he would not get abandon the race for the candidacy, and that he would continue at the head of the ministry.
“Hello everyone. The list closings are always exciting and difficult. And that’s how it is. There is nothing dramatic or life or death, but that the economy continues to function normally and that we do our work,” the text message said.
“We have IMF, the tender, the energy issues and gas pipeline. Subsidies in agriculture, poultry and pig farming (...) our work continues, that is why I ask you not to lose focus because on Monday we have to continue doing things to solve the serious problems of the economy and the country”, Massa added.
The rumors and the uncertainty surrounding the minister’s figure had led the cash and cash equivalents (CCL) dollar to climb comfortably above 510 pesos this Friday.
Argentina’s electoral calendar
- Closing of lists of pre-candidates: June 24
- Start of the electoral campaigns: June 24.
- Primary elections: August 13
- Presidential debates: October 8 and 15
- General elections 2023: Sunday October 22 to elect president, vice-president, deputies and senators
- Second round runoff, if necessary, Sunday, November 19