Opposition leaders hail ‘clear message’ from voters

Juntos por el Cambio’s leaders and candidates react jubilantly to results from PASO primaries, before pivoting to criticism of government.

Opposition politicians reacted jubilantly to results from the PASO primaries, with PRO party leader Patricia Bullrich declaring that Juntos candidates had scored unexpected wins in provinces nationwide.

Speaking to the LN+ news channel, the former security minister said the battle was on to affect the balance of power in the National Congress in the upcoming midterm elections.

“We need to add five national senators, so that Cristina Fernández de Kirchner loses quorum in the Upper House. We have the feeling that we can achieve that goal,” she declared.

“We have eight provinces in which Juntos por el Cambio has senators,” she said, vowing to “tour those provinces as we have never done before.”

“Since 1983, the Senate has had the hegemony of the same party, so with courage and governance we are going to achieve something unprecedented in Argentina, which is to remove quorum from Cristina Fernández [de Kirchner]. That will be our strategic objective from now on,” she declared, vowing not to let Juntos por el Cambio’s candidates “rest on our laurels.”

María Eugenia Vidal, the opposition’s top candidate for national deputy representing Buenos Aires Province, also commented on the race to shift the balance of power in Congress, declaring that voters had called for “a bloc that impedes the ruling majority and defends the Constitution and the Republic.”

This time “there is no going back,” she added, saying that the government’s “cynicism and lies” had to end.

Speaking to Jorge Lanata on the TN news channel on election night, former president Mauricio Macri described the result as a “clear message” from the electorate to the national government.

“There was a clear message from an Argentina that said enough to the lies, enough to ineptitude, enough to immorality.

The opportunity for Argentina has truly been born. We are beginning to see the end of populism in our country,” he declared.

Along these lines, he added: “The people are giving us a share of greater responsibility to try to stop this army of destruction,” he declared, painting the ruling coalition as a front controlled by Vicepresident Fernández de Kirchner and her backers.

As the ruling Frente de Todos coalition fell into disarray this week, with a major split breaking out into the open, opposition politicians let rip.

UCR leader Alfredo Cornejo called on the government to deliver “tranquility” and “peace of mind” to citizens, as he accused Vice-president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of “blaming” everyone else but herself.

Facundo Manes, who performed well in the Buenos Aires Province PASO and will run for national deputy for Juntos in November, rose his voice: “Instead of redefining the course of the country and delivering calm, they stress and confuse society even more in the midst of a crisis. Unprecedented irresponsibility.”

Mario Negri, UCR national deputy representing Córdoba Province, even declared that the government was in a “vegetative state.”