Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
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Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
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| Assumed office December 10, 2007 |
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| Vice President | Julio Cobos |
| Preceded by | Néstor Kirchner |
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| In office May 25, 2003 – December 10, 2007 |
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| Preceded by | Hilda Duhalde |
| Succeeded by | Néstor Kirchner (First Spouse of Argentina) |
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| In office December 10, 2005 – November 28, 2007 |
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| In office December 10, 2001 – December 9, 2005 December 10, 1995 – December 3, 1997 |
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| In office December 10, 1997 – December 9, 2001 |
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| Born | 19 February 1953 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina[1] |
| Political party | Front for Victory (FPV) Justicialist Party (PJ) |
| Spouse | Néstor Kirchner |
| Children | Máximo Kirchner Florencia Kirchner |
| Alma mater | National University of La Plata |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Signature |  |
| Website | The Casa Rosada |
Cristina Elizabeth Fernández de Kirchner (born February 19, 1953), commonly known as Cristina Kirchner, is the current President of Argentina. A member of the Justicialist Party, she was a Senator for Buenos Aires Province prior to taking office. She is the wife of former President of Argentina Néstor Kirchner, and acted as First Lady during his term.
In the October 2007 general election, Fernández ran for the presidency of Argentina, representing the ruling Front for Victory party. She won with 45.29% of the vote, a 22% lead over her nearest rival. This was one of the widest margins obtained by a candidate since democracy returned in 1983, and it avoided the need for a runoff election.[2] She is Argentina's first elected female President, and the second female President ever to serve (after Isabel Martinez de Perón, 1974-1976). In 2008, she was ranked by the magazine Forbes as thirteenth in the list of the 100 most powerful women in the world. [3]
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[edit] Personal life
Fernández was born in Tolosa, La Plata, province of Buenos Aires, daughter of Eduardo Fernández and Ofelia Esther Wilhelm. She studied law at the National University of La Plata during the 1970s. During her studies there, she met her future spouse, Néstor. They married on March 9, 1975 and had two children: Máximo and Florencia.[4] Florencia received international media attention during early 2008 when she started keeping a Fotolog.[5][6][7]
[edit] Political career
Fernández started her political career in the Peronist Youth movement of the Justicialist Party in the 1970s. During the period of authoritarian rule in the country, she and Néstor dropped out of politics and practiced law in Río Gallegos. She picked up politics again in the late 1980s, and was elected to the Santa Cruz provincial legislature in 1989, a position to which she was re-elected in 1993.
In 1995 Fernández was elected to represent Santa Cruz in the Senate, and in 1997 in the Chamber of Deputies. In 2001 she won again a seat in the Senate.
Fernández provided the main backbone to her husband's successful campaign for the presidency in 2003, against two other Justicialist candidates and several other competitors. In the April 27, 2003 presidential election first round, former president Carlos Saúl Menem won the greatest number of votes (25%), but failed to get the votes necessary to win an overall majority. A second-round run-off vote between Menem and second-place finisher Néstor Kirchner was scheduled for May 18. Feeling certain that he was about to face a resounding electoral defeat, Menem decided to withdraw his candidacy, thus automatically making Kirchner the new president, with 21.97% of the votes (the lowest number in the history of the country).[8]
During her husband's term, Fernández became an itinerant ambassador for his government. Her highly combative speech style polarized Argentine politics, recalling the style of Eva Perón. Although she repeatedly rejected the comparison later, Cristina once said in an interview that she identified herself "with the Evita of the hair in a bun and the clenched fist before a microphone" (the typical image of Eva Perón during public speeches) more than with the "miraculous Eva" of her mother's time, who had come "to bring work and the right to vote for women".[9][10][11]
Fernández was the main candidate for Senator of the Front for Victory faction of her party in the province of Buenos Aires, for the October 2005 elections, in a heated campaign directed mainly against Hilda González de Duhalde, the wife of former president Eduardo Duhalde. Kirchner won the elections by a 25% margin over González de Duhalde.
[edit] Election to Presidency of Argentina
With Fernández leading all the pre-election polls by a wide margin, her challengers were trying to force her into a run-off. She needed either more than 45% of the vote, or 40% of the vote and a lead of more than 10% over her nearest rival, to win outright. The legality of her presidential bid funding was later disputed when U.S federal prosecutors alleged that the government of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez secretly tried to funnel nearly $1 million in cash to her campaign,[12] while these allegations were vehemently denied by both the Argentinian and Venezuelan governments, it was a fact proven in U.S. courts that Mr. Guido Antonini Wilson entered Argentina with unexplained cash that he claimed was for Ms. Kirchner's political campaign.[13]
Fernández finally won the election in the first round with 45.3% of the vote, followed by 22% for Elisa Carrió (candidate for the Civic Coalition) and 16% for former Economy Minister Roberto Lavagna. Eleven others split the remaining 15%.[14] Mrs. Kirchner was popular among the suburban working class and the rural poor, while Ms. Carrió received more support from the urban middle class, as did Mr. Lavagna.[15] Of note, Kirchner lost the election in the three largest cities (Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Rosario), although she won in most other places elsewhere, including the large provincial capitals such as Mendoza and Tucumán.[16]
The president elect began a four-year term on December 10, 2007, facing challenges including inflation, union demands for higher salaries, private investment in key areas, lack of institutional credibility (exemplified by the controversy surrounding the national statistics bureau, INDEC), utility companies demanding authorization to raise their fees, low availability of cheap credit to the private sector, and the upcoming negotiation of the defaulted foreign debt with the Paris Club.[17][18][19]
[edit] Cabinet
On November 14, Fernández announced the names of her new cabinet, which started working with her on December 10. Of the 12 ministers appointed, seven were already ministers in Néstor Kirchner's government whilst the other five took office for the first time.[20]
 of Cristina Kirchner's Government |
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| Office | Name | Term |
| Chief of Ministers' Cabinet | Alberto Fernández Sergio Massa Aníbal Fernández |
December 10, 2007 – July 23, 2008 July 24, 2008 – July 7, 2009 July 7, 2009 - incumbent |
| Ministry of Interior | Florencio Randazzo | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship |
Jorge Taiana | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Defense | Nilda Garré | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Economy | Martín Lousteau Carlos Fernández Amado Boudou |
December 10, 2007 – April 24, 2008 [21] April 25, 2008 – July 7, 2009 July 7, 2009 - incumbent |
| Ministry of Federal Planning, Public Investment and Services |
Julio de Vido | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Justice, Security and Human Rights |
Aníbal Fernández Julio Alak |
December 10, 2007 – July 7, 2009 July 7, 2009 - incumbent |
| Ministry of Work, Labour and Social Security |
Carlos Tomada | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Health and Environment | Graciela Ocaña Juan Luis Manzur |
December 10, 2007 – July 1, 2009 July 1, 2009 - incumbent |
| Ministry of Social Development | Alicia Kirchner de Mercado | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Education | Juan Carlos Tedesco | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation |
Lino Barañao | December 10, 2007 – incumbent |
| Ministry of Production | Débora Giorgi | November 26, 2008 [22] – incumbent |
[edit] Presidency
During the first days of Fernández's presidency, Argentina's relations with the United States deteriorated as a result of allegations made by a United States assistant attorney of illegal campaign contributions, case known as the maletinazo (suitcase scandal). According to these allegations, Venezuelan agents tried to pressure a Venezuelan-American citizen (Guido Alejandro Antonini Wilson) to lie about the origin of $790,550 in cash found in his suitcase on August 4, 2007 at a Buenos Aires airport. U.S. prosecutors allege the money was sent to help Mrs. Kirchner's presidential campaign. Some of the allegations were proven and several individuals received a prison sentence after a widely reported trial.
Fernández and Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez called the allegations "a trashing operation" and part of a conspiracy orchestrated by the U.S. to divide Latin American nations. On December 19, 2007, she restricted the U.S. ambassador's activities and limited his meetings to Foreign Ministry officials; a treatment reserved for hostile countries, in the opinion of a former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State.[23][24][25] However, on January 31, in a special meeting with Kirchner, the U.S. ambassador in Argentina, Earl Anthony Wayne, clarified that the allegations "were never made by the United States government", and the dispute cooled down. Having said that the prosecutors making the charges are part of the judicial system of the U.S. government[26]
| Presidental styles of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner |
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| Reference style | Honorable Presidente de la Republica Argentina "The Honorable President of the Argentine Republic." |
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| Spoken style | Presidente de la Nación "President of the Nation." |
| Alternative style | Señora Presidente "Madam President." |
Elisa Carrió and María Estenssoro, both high ranking members of the main opposition parties, have claimed that the Argentine government's response to the allegations and its criticism of the U.S. are a "smokescreen", that the U.S. involvement in the affair was merely symptomatic, and the root cause of the scandal is corruption in the Argentine and Venezuelan governments.[27]
In March 2008, Fernández's government introduced a new sliding-scale taxation system for agricultural exports, effectively raising levies on soybean exports to 44% from 35% at the time of the announcement.[28] This led to a nationwide lockout by farming associations, starting on March 12, with the aim to force the government to back down on the new taxation scheme. As a result, on March 25, thousands of demonstrators banging pots massed around the obelisk in the capital and in front of the presidential palace. Protests extended across the country. In Buenos Aires, hours after Kirchner attacked farmers for their two-week strike and "abundant" profits, there were violent incidents between government supporters and protesters, and the police was accused of wilfully turning a blind eye.[29] The media was harshly critical of Luis D'Elía, a former government official who took part in the incidents, with some media sources and members of the opposition (notably Elisa Carrió), claiming that he and his followers had disrupted the protest pursuant to the government's orders.[30][31][32]
On April 1, the government organised a rally during which thousands of pro-government protesters marched through downtown Buenos Aires in support of the Argentine leadership. Kirchner recently called on farmers to act "as part of a country, not as owners of a country".[33]
A poll result published in El País, Spain's most widely-circulated daily newspaper, revealed that following the protests, Fernández's approval rating had "plummeted" from 57.8% at the start of her administration[34] to an unprecedented 23%.[35] A recent poll of Management & Fit, confirms the growing unpopularity of the new Kirchner administration. The poll, taken between April 27 and April 30, showed an approval rating of 23.6%, with a disapproval rating of 61.8%.
Fernández's inflexible handling of the protests and reluctance to review the policies that sparked the protest have led some people to claim that it is her husband, predecessor in office and current leader of the Justicialist Party, Néstor Kirchner, who controls her administration. The British weekly newspaper The Economist has described this situation as Mrs. Kirchner "paying the price for her husbands pig headedness".[36] Mrs. Kirchner sent the project of sliding-scale taxation system for agricultural exports to the National Congress to be convalidated as a national law, in an attempt to solve the problem according to the rules of the Argentine Constitution. After being modified with some advantageous changes for small farmers, the project was approved by the Lower Chamber, and sent to the Senate for final approval; however, after a 36-36 tie, Vice President Julio Cobos, who must act as President of the Senate and decide in case of a tie, voted against the project. This put an end to the conflict, though some sectors of the media described Cobos as "a traitor" to the president's project. Cobos denied that he would resign, although the relationship between the President and the Vice President has an uncertain future. Once recovered from the conflict with agrarian interests, Cristina Kirchner's public approval improved; her job approval ratings rose by 30% (Poliarquía, 08/22/08), though as of February 2009, her job approval rating was 28%.[37]
Riding a wave of approval during a dramatic economic recovery from a 2001-02 crisis, the Kirchners' FPV had prevailed enjoyed increasingly large majorities in Congress, reaching their peak following the 2007 general elections (with 153 Congressmen and 44 Senators, at the time). They could by no means count on a legislative blank check, however: on July 16, 2008, a presidentially-sponsored bill to increase Argentina's export taxes on the basis of a sliding scale met with deadlock, ultimately defeated by the tie-breaking "no" vote of Vice President Julio Cobos himself, and the controversy cost the FPV 16 Congressmen and 4 Senators by way of defections.[38]
On October 20, 2008, Fernández proposed the transfer of nearly $30 billion in private pension holdings to the social security system,[39] a law that was passed by Congress in late November.[40]
President Cristina Kirchner is a member of the Council of Women World Leaders, an international network of current and former women presidents and prime ministers whose mission is to mobilize the highest-level women leaders globally for collective action on issues of critical importance to women and equitable development.
Fernández was invited to the prestigious Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy in Washington, D.C., on November 15, 2008 by President George W. Bush. During her stay in Washington, she held meetings with Brazilian leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown), Madeleine Albright (representing U.S. President-elect Barack Obama), Senator Christopher Dodd and Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd at the Park Hyatt Hotel. She then attended the G20 meeting in London April 2, 2009 and was given a seat of honour at the dinner held the night before at 10 Downing Street, when she was seated across from President Obama. [41] Most of these meetings saw the anecdote of Cristina arriving late to meetings happening.
Following the June 28, 2009, mid-term elections, the ruling FPV's party list lost its absolute majority in both houses of Congress, shedding a further 24 seats in the Lower House (including allies) and 4 in the Senate. They lost in the four most important electoral districts (home to 60% of Argentines), and among these, the loss was narrow only in the Province of Buenos Aires. The FPV obtained a very narrow victory, overall, as percentage of the national vote, as retained their plurality in Congress .[42]. This will be reflected in strengthened opposition alliances, notably the center-right Unión Pro, the center-left Civic Coalition and the left-wing Proyecto Sur, when elected candidates in both chambers take office on December 11, 2009.[43] It took 10 days for the President to pronounce herself on the situation and in an unexpected turn she asked for a "comprehensive dialogue" between all the parties: this was a contrast with previous decisions by her and her husband, when in 2006 they overthrew a law guaranteeing the "democracy of internality of the parties". The negative approval of 70% of the population was a contrast with the 46% of votes that the President received in the 2007 elections, only 19 months before.
Cristina Kirchner has travelled extensively to countries such as Algeria, Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, France, Libya, Mexico, Qatar, Russia, Spain, the UK, the U.S. and Venezuela.
[edit] Relationship with the media
Fernández and her husband have always had a tempestuous relationship with the national media. In April 2008, Kirchner received a stern public rebuke from the Argentine Journalists Association (ADEPA) for having publicly accused the popular cartoonist Hermenegildo Sábat of behaving like a "quasi mafioso".[44] In addition, a government proposal to create a watchdog to monitor racism and discrimination was received with suspicion by ADEPA, who called it a "covert attempt to control the media".[45] Nestor Kirchner, Cristina's husband and predecessor in office, received a similar rebuke for publicly and falsely denouncing Joaquín Morales Solá, a journalist critical of the government, for having produced an inflammatory text published in 1978.[46]
[edit] References
- ^ Presidency of the Argentine Nation. "The President Biography" (in Spanish). http://www.casarosada.gov.ar/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1450&Itemid=117. Retrieved on 2009-04-03.
- ^ (Spanish) "Cristina Fernández ganó elecciones presidenciales con el 45,29% de los votos y una maleta de US$ 800.000". La Tercera. http://www.latercera.com/medio/articulo/0,0,3255_5702_311373480,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-11-18.
- ^ "The 100 Most Powerful Women: #13 Cristina Fernandez". Forbes. August 27, 2008. http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/11/biz_powerwomen08_Cristina-Fernandez_MFXX.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-17.
- ^ (Spanish) "Senadora Nacional Cristina E. Fernández De Kirchner". República Argentina. http://web.archive.org/web/20071228053233rn_1/kirchner.senado.gov.ar/web/senadores/biografia.php?id_sena=212&iOrden=0&iSen=ASC. Retrieved on 2008-09-08.
- ^ "There's Something About the President's Daughter". Time. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1700434,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-04.
- ^ "Wild child's exposure on web upsets presidential parents". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/dec/30/argentina.socialnetworking. Retrieved on 2008-11-04.
- ^ (Italian) "La vita in Rete della 17enne figlia del Presidente". Excite. http://web20.excite.it/news/6863/La-vita-in-Rete-della-17enne-figlia-del-Presidente. Retrieved on 2008-11-04.
- ^ (Spanish) "Menem y Kirchner disputarán la segunda vuelta el 18 de mayo". La Nación. April 28, 2003. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/archivo/Nota.asp?nota_id=492225.
- ^ (Spanish) "'Me identifico con la Eva del puño crispado'". Clarín. 27 July 2007. http://www.clarin.com/diario/2007/07/27/elpais/p-00803.htm.
- ^ Rory Carroll and Oliver Balch (26 October 2007). "President in waiting evokes echo of Evita". Guardian Unlimited. http://www.guardian.co.uk/argentina/story/0,,2199434,00.html.
- ^ James Sturcke (29 October 2007). "The art of the possible". Guardian Unlimited. http://www.guardian.co.uk/argentina/story/0,,2201278,00.html.
- ^ "4 in Miami held in Argentine campaign scandal". Miami Herald. http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_news/story/342256.html. Retrieved on 2007-12-12.
- ^ "Venezuela, Argentina Accuse US of Smear Campaign". Venezuelanalysis. http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/3001. Retrieved on 2007-12-14.
- ^ (Spanish) "Cristina se aleja por más de 20 puntos sobre el final del escrutinio". Clarín. 29 October 2007. http://www.clarin.com/diario/2007/10/29/um/m-01529064.htm.
- ^ "A Mixed Message in Argentina's Vote". Time. 29 October 2007. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1677374,00.html.
- ^ (Spanish) "Alpargatas sí, centros urbanos no". Página/12. 1 November 2007. http://www.pagina12.com.ar/diario/elpais/1-93883-2007-11-01.html.
- ^ (Spanish) "Los desafíos en el área económica que esperan al próximo gobierno". Página/12. 29 October 2007. http://www.pagina12.com.ar/diario/economia/2-93706-2007-10-29.html.
- ^ (Spanish) "Empresarios contentos por la continuidad del modelo K". Clarín. 28 October 2007. http://www.ieco.clarin.com/notas/2007/10/28/01528927.html.
- ^ (Spanish) "Prevén que el desempleo se ubicará en el 8% a fin de año". La Nación. 24 May 2007. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/archivo/Nota.asp?nota_id=911256.
- ^ El nuevo Gabinete: Lousteau va a Economía y De Vido sigue en Planificación Federal (Spanish)
- ^ "Argentine economy minister resigns". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN2447606620080425. Retrieved on 2008-04-25.
- ^ "Giorgi sworn in as new production minister". Buenos Aires Herald. http://www.buenosairesherald.com/argentina/note.jsp?idContent=551790. Retrieved on 2008-11-27.
- ^ (Spanish) "Cristina y Chávez, juntos contra EE.UU". La Nacion. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/politica/nota.asp?nota_id=972344. Retrieved on 2007-12-19.
- ^ "Argentina Protests Charges, Restricts U.S. Ambassador". Bloomberg. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=anPqjcENNtWo. Retrieved on 2007-12-20.
- ^ "Argentina, Venezuela and America. Slush and garbage". The Economist. http://www.economist.com/world/la/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10438525. Retrieved on 2008-01-03.
- ^ "Declaración del Eembajador de EE.UU., Earl Anthony Wayne, luego de reunirse con la Presidenta Cristina Fernández de Kirchner" (in Spanish). U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina. http://spanish.argentina.usembassy.gov/rel244.html. Retrieved on 2008-04-01.
- ^ "Troubles for Argentina's New Evita". TIME. 20 December 2007. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1697490,00.html.
- ^ "Argentine Soybean Output May Slip; Protests May Pause". Bloomberg. 9 March2008. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aXApGun1Lmpw.
- ^ "La policía observó, pero no intervino". La Nacion. 27 March 2008. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/politica/nota.asp?nota_id=999067&origen=relacionadas.
- ^ "Cacería para ganar la Plaza. Fueron golpeados manifestantes que apoyaban el reclamo del campo". La Nacion. 26 March 2008. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/politica/nota.asp?nota_id=998778&origen=relacionadas.
- ^ "El verdadero mensaje de las cacerolas". La Nacion. 27 March 2008. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/EdicionImpresa/politica/nota.asp?nota_id=999018&pid=4186310&toi=5825.
- ^ "Argentina's Fernández Plays With Fire". The Guardian. 01 April 2008. http://www.guardian.co.uk/feedarticle?id=7425706.
- ^ "In Argentina, thousands rally in support of president". Los Angeles Times. 2 April 2008. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-farmers2apr02,1,5792792.story.
- ^ "Positive Rating for Argentina’s Cristina Kirchner". Angus Reid. 31 December 2007. http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/view/positive_rating_for_argentinas_cristina_kirchner/.
- ^ "La popularidad de la presidenta argentina se hunde en tres meses". EL PAIS. 9 April 2008. http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/popularidad/presidenta/argentina/hunde/meses/elpepiint/20080409elpepiint_7/Tes.
- ^ "Cristina in the land of make believe". The Economist. 1 May, 2008. http://www.economist.com/world/la/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11293743.
- ^ Colombia Reports
- ^ Clarín: Crisis política tras el sorpresivo voto del Vicepresidente Cobos (Spanish)
- ^ Argentina seeks to nationalize private pensions
- ^ "Argentina Senate passes pension nationalisation law". The Peninsula. November 22, 2008. http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=Americas&month=November2008&file=World_News200811228342.xml. Retrieved on November 29, 2008.
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ Clarín: Infografía
- ^ "Libertad de prensa y democracia". Clarin. 4 April 2006. http://www.clarin.com/diario/2008/04/04/opinion/o-01643113.htm.
- ^ "Cuestionamiento de las entidades periodísticas". La Nacion. 8 April 2008. http://www.lanacion.com.ar/politica/nota.asp?nota_id=1002431.
- ^ "ADEPA pide prudencia al presidente de la Nación". ADEPA. 2 October 2006. http://www.adepa.org.ar/libertaddeprensa/dcl-02-10-06.asp.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: |
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Cristina Fernández de Kirchner |
- (English) Cristina Fernandez on Honduras Coup
- (Spanish) Office of the President
- (Spanish) Official site of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
- (Spanish) Senate of the Argentine Republic website
- (Spanish) Extensive biography by CIDOB Foundation
| Honorary titles | ||
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| Preceded by Hilda de Duhalde |
First Spouse of Argentina 2003 – 2007 |
Succeeded by Néstor Kirchner |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Néstor Kirchner |
President of Argentina 2007 – present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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