There's an old adage about politics: you campaign in poetry and you govern in prose. Even though Javier Milei, the winner of Sunday’s presidential runoff in Argentina, did not wield a chainsaw like he did on the campaign trail, the free market absolutist did again promise in his acceptance speech to drain the swamp. How radical will he be?
How bad off is the country this time? Argentina once again finds itself in the throes of hyperinflation and a crippling debt crisis that's wiped out savings. Will government services be gutted in the name of reform? What is the alternative?
Or – with no path to a majority in parliament – will Milei turn to the conspiracy theories and culture wars he peddled on the campaign trail? More broadly, with the likes of Donald Trump, Jair Bolsonaro and Elon Musk rushing to congratulate Milei, what does this South American election say about what politics will look like in 2024?
Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Rebecca Gnignati and Imen Mellaz.
