Anti-establishment man with a chainsaw in his hand. This is the new president of Argentina

• The results of the presidential elections in Argentina mark a completely new direction for the country. Javier Milei announced drastic changes
• The new president of the South American country is known as an anti-systemic, eccentric libertarian with extreme views
• Before appearing on the political scene, he was an economist, lecturer, author of numerous publications and television speaker
• You can find more such texts on the Onet home page

In the second round of the presidential elections in Argentina, the economic ultra-liberal Javier Milei received the majority of votes. His rival was the current Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa. “Today begins the reconstruction of Argentina,” Milei announced after the election results were announced. He added that “the situation is critical and there is no room for half-measures”, referring to the deep economic crisis of the country and the related inflation, poverty and unemployment. The economist and TV speaker known for his controversial views and statements may provide Argentina with “shock therapy”.

Economist, speaker and pet lover

He comes from Buenos Aires. He studied economics at the University of Belgrano in the capital, then obtained a master’s degree from two other universities. His specialty is economic growth. Milei taught microeconomics, macroeconomics and monetary theory at universities in Argentina and abroad. He is the author of numerous publications – over 50 scientific articles and several books. He has no family and has only had fleeting affairs. However, he considers his “four-legged children” to be dogs – English mastiffs, which have allegedly been cloned.

Before Milei entered the public spotlight, he was chief economist at Corporación America, one of Argentina’s largest business conglomerates, which, among other things, operates most of the country’s airports. He worked there until 2021, when he won a seat in the Chamber of Deputies. There he represented the far-right coalition La Libertad Avanza. In August 2023, he achieved the best result in the presidential primaries. During the election campaign, he became famous for, among others, that he appeared at rallies with a chainsaw in his hands. It was supposed to be a symbol of the deep cuts that Milei intends to introduce in Argentina.

Just a few years ago, no one in Argentina would have imagined that a charismatic TV speaker who boosted the station’s ratings could become president. However, it turned out that, among others, With his proposals for quite drastic moves in the political and economic arena, he gained a lot of supporters.

He wants the dollar in Argentina and drastic cuts in the government

Javier Milei demands, among other things, dollarization of the Argentine economy, liquidation of the Central Bank, legalization of organ trade. He is a supporter of austerity policy and calls for the liquidation of almost half of Argentine ministries, including: education and health. He is against abortion, but has a liberal approach to the issue of owning weapons.

“He represents a new external force aggressively attacking traditional power brokers on both sides of the political spectrum,” writes the Spanish-language CNN about him and cites Milea’s voters. – I will vote for Milei because I think he will change everything – said one of them. Another one, when asked about his electoral preferences, emphasized: “I’m fed up with the same faces, the same rulers.” In turn, the Argentine “Tiempo” writes about the newly elected president: “A nightmare that could come true”, believing that he is a man who breaks with all the rules of political correctness.

Source: onet.pl, france24.com, tiempoar.com.ar, cnnespanol.cnn.com, pl.wikipedia.org