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Young Argentinians want change. Many see Javier Milei as their best option | Elections News<\/p>\n
Buenos Aires, Argentina \u2013<\/strong> David Urbani was 15 years old, barely in high school, when he first encountered the future far-right presidential candidate Javier Milei.<\/p>\n Now an economics student at the National University of Mar del Plata, Urbani remembers surfing on YouTube when he stumbled on a series of educational videos that Milei had put together, as part of his work as an economist and professor in Buenos Aires at the time.<\/p>\n \u201cI think what moved me the most was the simple way he explained concepts,\u201d Urbani, 20, said, holding up an introductory economics book with Milei\u2019s autograph in it. \u201cThe guy is an academic, not a politician.\u201d<\/p>\n A relative newcomer to Argentina\u2019s politics, Milei has nevertheless catapulted to international fame as the dark horse candidate in this year\u2019s presidential elections.<\/p>\n This Sunday, he faces centre-left Economy Minister Sergio Massa in a run-off race so tight that polls show the two candidates in a dead heat.<\/p>\n Part of the fuel behind Milei\u2019s sudden political rise has been the devoted following he has whipped up among young, largely male voters like Urbani. Some are devoted libertarians. Others are merely curious and feeling disaffected with the political establishment.<\/p>\n But while pundits and opposition politicians lambaste Milei for his radical right-wing policy proposals, this young generation of \u201cmileistas\u201d say they\u2019re all in.<\/p>\n \u201cI believe we have to try, and that\u2019s it,\u201d Ramiro G\u00f3mez, a 21-year-old information technology (IT) technician from the province of Rosario, said of his decision to back Milei.<\/p>\n Elected to the lower chamber of Argentina\u2019s congress in 2021, Milei was still in his freshman term when he launched his long-shot presidential bid in this year\u2019s race.<\/p>\n But he quickly scored an upset. In August\u2019s open primary, he rocketed to the top spot, earning more votes than establishment figures like Massa and former Security Minister Patricia Bullrich.<\/p>\n Milei has remained a frontrunner ever since. In October\u2019s general elections, he finished in second place behind Massa, earning one of two slots in the run-off race.<\/p>\n Many experts credit Milei\u2019s sudden popularity to the dire straits of Argentina\u2019s economy. The country faces a long-running economic crisis, and inflation has topped 140 percent, driving down the value of Argentina\u2019s national currency, the peso.<\/p>\n To address the crisis, Milei has promised to slash key government ministries, charge fees for Argentina\u2019s public healthcare system, shutter the central bank, and adopt the United States dollar as Argentina\u2019s national currency.<\/p>\n He has also adopted an eyebrow-raising mixture of libertarian and conservative social stances, offering support for banning abortion and legalising organ sales. Popular targets for his sharply worded broadsides include women, the LGBTQ community and even Pope Francis, an Argentinian himself.<\/p>\n Yet, while other right-wing populists like former US President Donald Trump and Brazil\u2019s Jair Bolsonaro have struggled to win over younger generations, Milei has consistently led polls of voters between the ages of 16 and 35.<\/p>\n Mark P Jones, a professor in Latin American studies at Rice University, credits the difference to the deep-seated frustration with Argentina\u2019s crisis and Milei\u2019s image as a political outsider.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen younger voters look at Milei, they see someone who\u2019s fighting against the system and a rebel,\u201d Jones said. \u201cAnd I think one thing Milei has been able to do is effectively dissociate himself with younger voters from his more conservative policies.\u201d<\/p>\n Milei\u2019s most ardent supporters often connect through WhatsApp groups and on social media, where fan accounts feature silhouettes of the candidate\u2019s signature sideburns and memes depict him locked in epic anime battles.<\/p>\n Milei\u2019s eccentricity is central to his brand: He once was the frontman of a Rolling Stones cover band, and he currently owns five cloned dogs, each named after right-wing economists.<\/p>\n Videos have also gone viral during the election showing Milei tearing down Post-It notes with the names of the government ministries he intends to cut and shouting his catchphrase, \u201cLong live f***ing liberty!\u201d<\/p>\n Jones described Milei\u2019s base as motivated less by ideology and more by desperation and exasperation with the traditional political establishment.<\/p>\n His bloc of supporters, Jones explained, is largely composed of middle- and working-class voters in their late teens and 20s who are frustrated with struggling to maintain gainful employment.<\/p>\n \u201cMilei is their vehicle to effectively take a chainsaw to the status quo, but also to perhaps try something different,\u201d Jones said, referencing Milei\u2019s embrace of the chainsaw as a campaign symbol.<\/p>\n Alan Quiroga, 28, who lives in a working-class suburb of Buenos Aires and drives for Uber on his motorcycle, said he was first drawn to Milei when he saw the libertarian on television, speaking passionately about Argentina\u2019s \u201cgolden age\u201d in the early 20th century.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat he wants to implement is what they do in the United States, in Spain, in normal countries,\u201d Quiroga said. \u201cWhat we are experiencing here is going towards Venezuela, Cuba.\u201d<\/p>\n Though popular with many of his supporters, Milei\u2019s proposal to adopt the US dollar faces steep opposition from the broader public. A September poll showed nearly 70 percent of Argentinians disapproved of the idea.<\/p>\n That month, 170 Argentinian economists also published an open letter predicting that a currency switch would lead to further inflation, mass unemployment and \u201cabsurd\u201d increases in Argentina\u2019s $400bn public debt.<\/p>\n But Milei\u2019s appeal among young voters goes beyond his radical economic plan. The candidate has sought to position himself as a critic of corruption among the political elite, whom he calls \u201cthe caste\u201d.<\/p>\n High-ranking members of Argentina\u2019s main political parties have recently faced corruption charges. Last year, for instance, outgoing Vice President Cristina Fernandez was sentenced to six years in jail for fraud.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Javier Milei I like the most is the effusive Javier Milei, the honest Javier Milei,\u201d Urbani said. \u201cIt\u2019s the Javier Milei who gets mad when he\u2019s faced with lies, faced with dishonest people.\u201d<\/p>\n Milei has a penchant for the dramatic, at times appearing overcome with emotion during his public speeches.<\/p>\n \u201cA good crazy person \u2014 that\u2019s how I would describe him,\u201d Quiroga said. \u201cIt comes from his heart. He can\u2019t control it.\u201d<\/p>\n Yet, even some of Milei\u2019s longstanding supporters have their doubts about his ability to maintain his credentials as a corruption fighter, especially as he broadens his coalition to include the kinds of establishment figures he frequently criticizes.<\/p>\n Former President Mauricio Macri has offered Milei his backing, as has Bullrich, his former conservative rival in the presidential race.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen he became involved in politics, without wanting to, he became part of the caste,\u201d said Lucas Gonz\u00e1lez, a 28-year-old bookstore owner who said he still supports Milei.<\/p>\n Though Milei has built a strong movement, whether or not it survives will depend on the results of Sunday\u2019s election and how the economy fares in the coming months, said Noam Lupu, a professor of political science at Vanderbilt University who researches Argentina.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will always be this kind of libertarian, pro-business vote in Argentina,\u201d Lupu said. \u201cBut the sort of anti-establishment, anti-status quo, pro-disruption only succeeds if it continues to feel threatened by the status quo and the political class.\u201d<\/p>\n Urbani disagrees. He believes that Milei has triggered a significant political shift among Argentinian youth that will persist regardless of Sunday\u2019s election results.<\/p>\n \u201cThe majority of the youth are Milei voters, and especially boys,\u201d Urbani said. \u201cWhat is coming for Argentina is very good, because a lot of kids have started to reckon with capitalist ideas, with economic concepts in their heads that they were not talking about before.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u0627\u0644\u0645\u0635\u062f\u0631<\/a>A \u2018chainsaw\u2019 to the status quo<\/h2>\n
\u2018A good crazy person\u2019<\/h2>\n
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