Kirchner eyes comeback as Argentina names key vote contenders

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Argentinian President Mauricio Macri’s coalition solidified its lead as Argentina’s biggest political force in primary votes Sunday that also saw the return of fiery leftist former leader Cristina Kirchner, who has been accused by critics in the death of a Jewish prosecutor who alleged she colluded with Iran.

The compulsory votes are a formality to officially name the candidates teed up by their parties to run in the October 22 legislative elections.

Macri’s liberal economic reforms in the poverty-stricken country appeared to have survived the test, two years into his term, with the Cambiemos coalition leading in the country’s five biggest provinces.

“This is the change Argentines want,” Macri told supporters.

“Results don’t come overnight for things done seriously,” he added, speaking to those suffering from the impact of inflation and unemployment, with about a third of the population living in poverty.

Much of the focus for the vote was on Buenos Aires, a province home to about 40 percent of voters that stretches from the capital to the Pampas plains, and what results Kirchner would obtain.

Kirchner, 64, dominated Argentine politics for years alongside her late husband before leaving office in 2015.

She scored 32 percent support for her bid to get a senate seat, despite facing corruption charges which she says are politically motivated.

Her scored lagged behind ruling party candidate Esteban Bullrich, who got 36 percent.

A seat in the Senate would spare Kirchner jail if convicted of corruption. Her supporters hope it could also pave the way for a fresh presidential bid in 2019.

In addition to the corruption charges, critics also continue to link Kirchner to the mysterious 2015 death of Alberto Nisman, a prosecutor who had accused her of obstructing his investigation into a 1994 bombing at a Buenos Aires Jewish center.

Nisman was found shot to death on January 18, 2015, hours before he was to present his allegations of a secret deal to cover up Iranian officials’ alleged role in the devastating bombing of the AMIA center in 1994. His allegations named Kirchner, her foreign minister Hector Timerman and the government as co-conspirators in a cover-up.

Whether Nisman’s shooting in his apartment was murder or self-inflicted has yet to be determined.

Despite this cloud hanging of Kirchner, her campaign is a headache for conservative Macri, 58.

He says his budget cuts are strengthening the economy but Kirchner and other critics say they are hurting the poor.

Macri lacks a majority in the legislature, where he has had to cobble together support for his reforms.

The October mid-term elections will be a major electoral harbinger for the Macri government, which is seeking to boost its foothold in parliament, where it is in minority in both chambers.

But Sunday’s primaries already signaled a lack of structured opposition at the national level.

In the capital city, Macri-backed candidate Elisa Carrio got 48 percent of the vote, and government ally Martin Loustau got 13 percent.

Through his Cambiemos candidates, “Macri is looking to gain strength to ensure he can govern,” sociologist Ricardo Rouvier told AFP.

“The opposition wants to send a message to the government that it is doing things badly.”

JTA and Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.