( en, Together for Change) is a
centre-right
Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and ...
political coalition in
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
. It was created in 2015 as Cambiemos ( en, Let's Change), and renamed in 2019. It is composed of
Republican Proposal,
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union ( es, Unión Cívica Radical, UCR) is a centrist and social-liberal political party in Argentina. It has been ideologically heterogeneous, ranging from social liberalism to social democracy. The UCR is a member of the S ...
,
Civic Coalition ARI and
United Republicans.
These three parties respectively nominated
Mauricio Macri,
Ernesto Sanz, and
Elisa Carrió as their representatives in the August 2015
primary election
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...
s, which were held to choose which candidate would run in the
2015 presidential election on 25 October.
On 9 August, Macri was elected as the candidate who would represent Cambiemos in the
presidential election
A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President.
Elections by country
Albania
The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public.
Chile
The p ...
; on 22 November, where he won in
second round
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds each ...
by 51%.
It wants the definitive modernization of the country and the creation of a new anti-
populist
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develop ...
and
republican-
liberal political culture.
Creation
Initially, the pre-candidates
Mauricio Macri,
Daniel Scioli
Daniel Osvaldo Scioli (, ; born 13 January 1957) is an Argentine politician, sportsman, and businessman. He was Vice President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007 and Governor of Buenos Aires Province from 2011 to 2015. From 2020 to 2022 he was Argen ...
, and
Sergio Massa had a triple tie in the polls for the
2015 presidential election. Scioli was the candidate of the
Front for Victory, the ruling party at the time.
The other parties created a political coalition, the
Broad Front UNEN.
Elisa Carrió, leader of the Civic Coalition, left UNEN and joined a coalition with Macri's
PRO
Pro is an abbreviation meaning " professional".
Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to:
People
* Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest
* Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter
* Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retire ...
instead. Both of them would run in the primary elections.
The
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union ( es, Unión Cívica Radical, UCR) is a centrist and social-liberal political party in Argentina. It has been ideologically heterogeneous, ranging from social liberalism to social democracy. The UCR is a member of the S ...
was divided:
Ernesto Sanz proposed to join Macri as well, and
Julio Cobos
Julio César Cleto Cobos (; born 30 April 1955) is an Argentine politician who was the Vice President of Argentina in the administration of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner from 2007 to 2011. He started his political career as member of ...
proposed to stay in UNEN. The party held a convention to decide what to do, and Sanz's proposal prevailed. Thus, the UCR left UNEN and joined the PRO-CC.
The new coalition was named "Cambiemos", suggesting a change from the 12-year long rule of
center-left Kirchnerists.
History
Macri, Sanz, and Carrió ran to be the nominee in the
primary elections with Macri winning by a wide margin. He won the presidential election against the Kirchnerite candidate
Daniel Scioli
Daniel Osvaldo Scioli (, ; born 13 January 1957) is an Argentine politician, sportsman, and businessman. He was Vice President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007 and Governor of Buenos Aires Province from 2011 to 2015. From 2020 to 2022 he was Argen ...
in a
ballotage. In lower-level posts,
Horacio Rodríguez Larreta was elected as Macri's replacement, keeping the City of Buenos Aires under coalition control.
Alfredo Cornejo and
Gerardo Morales became governors of
Mendoza and
Jujuy
San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies ne ...
Provinces, respectively.
María Eugenia Vidal defeated
Aníbal Fernández and became the governor of the populous
Buenos Aires Province
Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...
, ending 28 years of
Peronist
Peronism, also called justicialism,. The Justicialist Party is the main Peronist party in Argentina, it derives its name from the concept of social justice., name=, group= is an Argentine political movement based on the ideas and legacy of A ...
control.
The
2017 Argentine legislative election renewed a third of the seats in the Senate and half in the Chamber of Deputies. The result was a victory for the ruling
Cambiemos alliance, being the most voted force in 13 of the 24 districts.
In June 2019, an extension of the
Cambiemos alliance was made: it is renamed Together for Change, by adding to
Federal Peronism led by
Miguel Ángel Pichetto, who would share the presidential formula of space together with
Mauricio Macri. In the 2019 presidential elections, JxC was in second place, with 40% of the votes, behind
Alberto Fernández, who won first round with 48% of the votes.
In the
province of Buenos Aires, Governor
María Eugenia Vidal sought re-election but was defeated by the candidate of the
Frente de Todos
The Frente de Todos (translated as "Everyone's Front") is a coalition of Peronist and Kirchnerist political parties in Argentina formed to support President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Kirchner.
Fernández won the 2019 gen ...
,
Axel Kicillof
Axel Kicillof (, born 25 September 1971) is an Argentine Peronist economist and politician who has been Governor of Buenos Aires since 2019.
Kicillof completed an ideological turn, from teaching Marxist economics to the doctrine of Perón, jo ...
, who won 52% of the votes against 38% obtained by JxC.
In the
City of Buenos Aires,
Horacio Rodríguez Larreta joins the
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union ( es, Unión Cívica Radical, UCR) is a centrist and social-liberal political party in Argentina. It has been ideologically heterogeneous, ranging from social liberalism to social democracy. The UCR is a member of the S ...
and the
Socialist Party
Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of ...
to the district alliance and is reelected as
Chief of Government with 56% of the votes in the first round.
On
10 December 2019, the Centre-Left
Alberto Fernández of the
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party ( es, Partido Justicialista, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism.
Current president Alberto Fernández belongs to the Justicialist Party (and has, since 2021, serve ...
was inaugurated President, after defeating the incumbent
Mauricio Macri in the
2019 Argentine general election
General elections were held in Argentina on 27 October 2019, to elect the president of Argentina, members of the national congress and the governors of most provinces. Former Cabinet Chief Alberto Fernández of Frente de Todos defeated incumbent ...
.
On 14 November 2021, the center-left coalition of Argentina's ruling Peronist party,
Frente de Todos
The Frente de Todos (translated as "Everyone's Front") is a coalition of Peronist and Kirchnerist political parties in Argentina formed to support President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Kirchner.
Fernández won the 2019 gen ...
(Front for Everyone), lost its majority in Congress for the first time in almost 40 years in midterm
legislative elections. The election victory of Juntos por el Cambio meant a tough final two years in office for President Alberto Fernández. Losing control of the Senate made it difficult for him to make key appointments, including to the judiciary. It also forced him to negotiate with the opposition every initiative he sends to the legislature.
Positions
According to the media, ''Cambiemos'' is a
center-right
Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and mer ...
coalition, because it is led by
Mauricio Macri.
Hours after Argentina's political landscape underwent a tectonic rightward shift, president-elect Mauricio Macri announced a series of radical changes that would realign his country's place in the world. Macri said he would tear up Argentina's memorandum of understanding with
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, seek
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
’s exclusion from the regional free trade association
Mercosur and ease away from a
fixed exchange rate with the dollar. This is the "change of an era we need to be in the world", he declared at a press conference.
He aligned the country with
gradualist neoliberalism
Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent f ...
and re-opened Argentina to international markets by lifting
currency controls,
restructuring sovereign debt, and pressing
free-market solutions.
President Mauricio Macri said he would seek more sweeping reforms for Argentina after his governing coalition scored a resounding victory in 2017 congressional elections. Macri told reporters Argentinians should expect reforms in tax, education and labor, without providing details. The
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
leader had been pushing a
free-market
In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ot ...
reform agenda to try to overhaul Argentina's economy.
His presidency has been criticized for failing to
materially reform the economy while receiving praise for leaving a
legacy of anti-corruption and increasing Argentina's
sovereign marketability.
Domestic policies
The members of Cambiemos were constituted to "promote
economic development
In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and ...
, the strengthening of
democracy
Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose g ...
and the
republican system, the
independence of justice, the quality of
education
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...
,
social solidarity
''Solidarity'' is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. It is based on class collaboration.''Merriam Webster'', http://www.merriam-webster.com/dicti ...
, and the
personal happiness of the inhabitants of the
Argentine Republic."
Economic policies
Mauricio Macri received a country with huge economic problems, and sought to reverse things. Quickly, moved from a
fixed exchange-rate system to a
floating one, removed
taxes on exports and reduced
subsidies on energy, to reduce the
fiscal deficit
The government budget balance, also alternatively referred to as general government balance, public budget balance, or public fiscal balance, is the overall difference between government revenues and spending. A positive balance is called a ''g ...
.
Macri avoided to use a
shock therapy and introduced the changes in a
gradual way.
In April 2016, he negotiated with the
vulture fund
A vulture fund is a hedge fund, private-equity fund or distressed debt fund, that invests in debt considered to be very weak or in default, known as distressed securities. Investors in the fund profit by buying debt at a discounted price on a ...
and ended the
default to return to the
international capital markets
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
.
Until January 2018, the gradualist system was working well, although at a slower pace than needed.
Since May 2018, as part of an agreement with the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
, the government accelerated the
austerity
Austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spend ...
plans, aiming to completely remove the
fiscal deficit
The government budget balance, also alternatively referred to as general government balance, public budget balance, or public fiscal balance, is the overall difference between government revenues and spending. A positive balance is called a ''g ...
.
Social policies
Domestically, he pursued moderate
socially liberal policies, liberalized the
energy sector
The energy industry is the totality of all of the industries involved in the production and sale of energy, including fuel extraction, manufacturing, refining and distribution. Modern society consumes large amounts of fuel, and the energy indust ...
, and combatted
public corruption.
Macri named two
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
justices.
President Mauricio Macri encouraged the discussion of an
abortion law during the
2018 opening of regular sessions of the National Congress of Argentina.
The bill, called "
Voluntary termination of pregnancy", divided the coalition, that had no official position and the legislators voted according their beliefs.
Mauricio Macri,
Maria Eugenia Vidal,
Horacio Rodríguez Larreta,
Elisa Carrió, and ministers
Marcos Peña,
Rogelio Frigerio,
Esteban Bullrich
Esteban José Bullrich (born 26 May 1969, Buenos Aires) is an Argentine politician. A member of Republican Proposal (PRO), he served as a National Senator for Buenos Aires Province from 2017 to 2021, and as Minister of Education from 2015 to 201 ...
, etc., are
anti-abortion
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respo ...
;
Martin Lousteau,
Mario Negri,
Luis Petcoff Naidenoff and ministers Sergio Rubinstein,
Patricia Bullrich
Patricia Bullrich (born 11 June 1956) is an Argentine politician. She was Minister of Security under President Mauricio Macri and is the chairwoman of Republican Proposal.
Born in Buenos Aires, Bullrich graduated from the University of Palermo ...
,
Sergio Bergman,
Juan José Aranguren, etc.; are
pro-abortion
Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as Pro-choice (term), pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have Abortion law, legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support wome ...
.
In this coalition of 108 members, the rejection of the project was imposed, with 65 negative votes compared to 42 positive.
Within the ruling alliance, the
PRO
Pro is an abbreviation meaning " professional".
Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to:
People
* Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest
* Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter
* Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retire ...
prevailed with the negative vote (37) - it should be remembered that President
Mauricio Macri had expressed himself "in favor of life" - while 17 voted for the positive. In
radicalism, 24 supported the initiative, 16 rejected it. In the
Civic Coalition, of its 10 members, only
Juan Manuel López voted in favor.
When the bill was brought up again in late 2020, the coalition split, with 69 voting against and 42 in favour. In the
PRO
Pro is an abbreviation meaning " professional".
Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to:
People
* Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest
* Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter
* Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retire ...
40 members voted against while only 11 voted in favour, while in the
Civic Coalition 4 supported the bill and 9 voted against. In contrast the
radicals
Radical may refer to:
Politics and ideology Politics
*Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change
*Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...
saw a greater endorsement of the bill, having 27 of its members in support and only 18 against.
In the senate the coalition was divided more evenly, with 11 members voting in favour and 14 against. It also resulted in an inversion of party support, with a majority of
PRO
Pro is an abbreviation meaning " professional".
Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to:
People
* Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest
* Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter
* Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retire ...
voting favourably (5 yes and 3 no), while the
radicals
Radical may refer to:
Politics and ideology Politics
*Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change
*Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...
voted 9 against and 5 in favour. Other minor parties in JxC on both chambers also voted in different positions.
Foreign policy
Cambiemos opposes strongly the regime of
Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and president of Venezuela since 2013, with his presidency under dispute since 2019.
Beginning his working life as a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade union ...
in
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
for
human rights abuses
Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of h ...
and calls for a restoration of
democracy
Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose g ...
in the country. It recognized
Juan Guaidó
Juan Gerardo Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan politician, a former member of the social-democratic Popular Will party, and federal deputy to the National Assembly representing the state of Vargas. On 23 January 2019, Guaid� ...
, who was elected
President of Venezuela
The president of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de Venezuela), officially known as the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is the head of state and head of government in Ven ...
by the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the r ...
during the
Venezuelan presidential crisis of 2019.
Macri improved
the relations with the United States
and from
Mercosur achieved a
free trade agreement
A free-trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating states. There are two types of trade agreements: bilateral and multilateral. Bilateral trade agreements occ ...
with the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
and closer ties with the
Pacific Alliance.
Macri and his
Foreign Minister
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...
Susana Malcorra endorsed
Democrat Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
in the
2016 US presidential election
The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
, which was won by
Republican Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
.
Mauricio Macri said he wanted to start a "new kind of relationship" with the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
over the
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...
as he tried to move his country towards a centrist position in world affairs.
During the first week in office, Macri annulled the
Memorandum of understanding between Argentina and Iran, which would have established a joint investigation into the
1994 bombing with AMIA, a terrorist attack on a Jewish organization for which Argentina blamed
Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
and
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
.
Presidents
Members
Electoral performance
President
Legislative elections
Chamber of Deputies
Senate
References
External links
*
{{Mauricio Macri
2015 establishments in Argentina
Anti-nationalist parties
Neoliberalism
Political party alliances in Argentina
Radical Civic Union