Argentina's Libertarian Leader Casts Aside Alliance with Conservative Ex-President

Argentina's libertarian leader Javier Milei has ended a partnership with conservative ex-president Mauricio Macri, opting instead to challenge Macri's party, Propuesta Republicana (PRO), in local and national elections. Macri initially supported Milei, whose economic policies he had previously restrained as president. However, the relationship soured as Macri realized Milei had no intention of forming a coalition. The PRO, led by Macri, is now facing attacks from both sides - from Milei's party, La Libertad Avanza (LLA), on the right and from centrist voters who disapprove of its support for Milei's government.

Key Takeaways:

• Javier Milei's La Libertad Avanza party has broken off its alliance with Mauricio Macri's Propuesta Republicana (PRO) party.
• Macri initially supported Milei, whose economic policies he had previously restricted as president.
• The relationship between Milei and Macri soured after Macri realized Milei had no intention of forming a coalition.
• The PRO is facing challenges from both sides - from Milei's LLA party on the right and from centrist voters who disapprove of its support for Milei.
• PRO officials have quit the party to join the libertarians, and one of Macri's 2023 presidential candidates, Patricia Bullrich, has joined LLA.
• The Peronists are also likely to gain strength in the Buenos Aires elections, which could lead to a rebuilding of the rightwing alliance.
• The relationship between Milei's LLA and the PRO is described as "very damaged" by one former Macri official.

Statistics:

• 2023 presidential election: Javier Milei won with the support of Mauricio Macri.
• Number of seats Macri's PRO party has to lose: numerous.
• Support for attending negotiations: 50% of PRO officials have split over whether to continue negotiating with Milei's party.
• Polls: The Peronists are likely to gain strength in the Buenos Aires elections, potentially winning the most votes in the city.

Sources:

• [CIARA NUGENT -- BUENOS AIRES Argentina's libertarian leader Javier Milei has cast aside an alliance with conservative ex-president Mauricio Macri, as the bellicose economist seeks to subdue the traditional centre-right and reshape politics in his image. Macri, who led Argentina in 2015-19, has given Milei a lot. His endorsement helped the self-described "anarchocapitalist" win moderate voters at the 2023 election. His former ministers soothed investor fears by joining Milei's cabinet. And his party has backed the new president in votes in congress. But Milei may now seek to crush Macri's conservative PRO (Propuesta Republicana, or Republican Proposal) party at local and national elections this year. If successful, he would cement his brasher, more populist libertarian party, obsessed with shrinking the state, as the strongest alternative to Peronism, the powerful leftwing movement. "If you can't work with the PRO, who saved your bacon five times during this first year-and-a-half ... ," Macri lamented in a television interview this month before trailing off. "You just can't fight with everyone all day long." Milei disagrees. His La Libertad Avanza (LLA) party is gunning to defeat the PRO at elections in Macri's bastion of Buenos Aires city on May 18. And he has so far refused to strike electoral alliances with the PRO for crucial national midterms in October. "Milei wants to monopolise the nonPeronist space, and that means sending Macri into retirement," said Ignacio Labaqui, a senior analyst at research group Medley Global Advisors. In Buenos Aires, the president has chosen a senior figure, his spokesperson Manuel Adorni, to head his candidate list. Polls are tight, but the PRO could come second or even third on its home turf, behind both LLA and the Peronists. "After this vote, the PRO is going to realise that Argentina's political system has changed," said one Milei government official. "If they come third, it would be the end of them as a political alternative." Macri initially cheered Milei. The pair met for several advice sessions as the libertarian pushed through rapid spending cuts that Macri's centrist coalition partners had restrained the former leader from making while in office. The new president affectionately referred to the old one as "presi". But the relationship soon soured, PRO and LLA insiders say, as Macri realised Milei did not plan to offer a formal powersharing deal. PRO officials, reading the political winds, have quit the party to join the libertarians. Macri's 2023 presidential candidate Patricia Bullrich, already serving as Milei's security minister, formally joined LLA last week. As election season heats up, Macri has given interviews criticising Milei's "lack of respect" for institutions, including an attempt to install by decree a supreme court candidate accused of shielding corrupt politicians. "When [Milei] talked to me about his project for the country, I was excited, but it turned into a project for power," Macri said in a broadcast interview last week. The PRO finds itself under attack in Buenos Aires from all sides. On one flank, it is locked in a zero-sum contest with the LLA for right-leaning voters. Macri has many seats to lose while the libertarians start from a tiny base. Gerardo Vinciguerra, 82, a retiree in the capital's affluent Colegiales neighbourhood, said he was a longtime Macri supporter but was "leaning towards" Milei's candidates. "Macri didn't confront opponents enough ... Milei goes out and fights all the time," he added. "It's off-putting, but it's what you've got to do these days." But Macri's party also risks losing centrists who disapprove of its congressional support for Milei. "I won't vote for the PRO again, because all they care about is power," said Alejandra Stetler, a 65-year-old teacher in the same area. Macri has repeatedly blamed Milei's sister and chief of staff, Karina, for blocking negotiations over an electoral deal with the PRO. "We [should] end this contest in the city, which was a huge mistake by Karina Milei," he said in a radio interview on Saturday. LLA remains divided over whether to attempt a deal for the midterms, said Ana Iparraguirre, Argentina-based partner at Washington strategy firm GBAO. "One side says, we need to get as many lawmakers as possible to advance our agenda in congress, and going with the PRO will help," she said. "The other says, let's ... shrink the PRO as much as possible, and we will have roughly the same number of lawmakers, but we don't have to share power." The split on the right is benefiting the Peronists. Buenos Aires polling shows the movement potentially winning the most votes in the city, which is normally a weak spot for them. That could push the rightwing parties to rebuild their alliance, at least for the Buenos Aires province election. "The relationship is very damaged," said one former Macri official. "It's clear that the LLA doesn't believe in coalitions. Macri sees that now. But it cost him a lot to get there."]