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Argentina's New President Has a Legacy to Overcome: Her Husband's
Cristina Fern¿ndez de Kirchner campaigned for president pledging change, but has been slow to alter the policies of her predecessor.
(By Diego Levy -- Bloomberg News)
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And like Evita and Juan Perón, Fernández de Kirchner and her husband are viewed by many as a team, even though the couple discouraged the notion during the campaign.
"I think him becoming the head of the Peronist party is a logical step as they try to consolidate power," said Riordan Roett, director of Western Hemisphere studies at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. "She controls the purse strings and he controls the patronage. That's a very powerful combination in terms of keeping the country's governors in line and using the government's influence to influence their congressional delegations."
Elected in October from a broad field of candidates by receiving 45 percent of votes, Fernández de Kirchner remains popular at home. An opinion poll published last month by Management & Fit consultants put her public support at 57 percent. Her husband's approval rating a year ago as president was slightly higher.
The relative strength of the economy compared with what it was a few years ago is a big part of her popularity, because many believe the Kirchners' economic model represents a viable alternative to the free-market policies that have absorbed much of the blame for the financial crisis. But other factors contribute to their support. Fernández de Kirchner's outspoken criticism of the military dictatorship that ruled the country for much of the 1970s and 1980s plays well with a majority of the nation.
When she was inaugurated, Fernández de Kirchner spoke passionately about change. "It must be completely clear that for Argentina to have a future and avoid repeating the past, it needs to fully confront the challenge of change," she said. "Change is the name of the future."
Analysts say that when she highlighted "change" during her campaign, she was speaking of adjustments to many of the policies her husband had implemented -- not a complete overhaul.
So far, continuity has been the reality during the first part of her term.
"People hoped she'd be more pragmatic, and she's not more pragmatic -- she seems almost a prisoner of her husband's legacy," Roett said. "I'm waiting for new initiatives, and I haven't seen anything yet."
Most Argentines, particularly those in the country's provinces, remain willing to give their new president the benefit of the doubt. But in urban centers such as Buenos Aires, which did not favor Fernández de Kirchner in the election and where most public debate is generated, the contradiction between continuity and change is already creating tension.
The question has only grown more pressing: Is her presidency pushing Argentina into the future, or is it turning back the clock?
