Javier Milei’s surprise victory in Argentina’s presidential PASO primary shocked the world. Not just the domestic political ecosystem was stunned – a global reaction saw Milei’s digital popularity overtake Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in the immediate aftermath of the election. The ultra-libertarian economist with wild hair is such a sensation that even an investor report by JPMorgan Chase
JPM
Very quickly, Milei has become “larger than life.” His contenders meanwhile remain paralyzed, going on a media frenzy that has dominated the airwaves. It is solidifying a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy, by which a frontrunner in a hotly contested race – with the leading political coalitions separated by mere percentage points – is already being perceived as the next president. His eccentric nature and the novelty of his unexpected victory, especially given the lack of a nationwide political organization behind him, have left Argentina’s intelligentsia dumbfounded, scratching their heads to understand a phenomenon that is absolutely alien to them. They are fearful and, along with certain antagonistic political sectors, envision an apocalyptic future when only recently there seemed to be an optimistic outlook for the country regardless of whether Juntos por el Cambio or Unión por la Patria won the election.
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