MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

CFK has until Friday to launch re-election bid and disclose name of ticket partner

Zanini, Boudou, Capitanich, among the possible Vice-president candidates

Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner is expected to announce this week her re-election bid and her running mate while public opinion polls indicate CFK could easily win in the first round of the presidential election, October 23.

Deadline is June 25 when she must register the presidential ticket for October 23 if she finally agrees to run which is universally anticipated since there’s no time at this stage for a plan b or alternative candidate.

She will face a splintered opposition that will be presenting six/seven presidential tickets, leaving aside the alliances which enabled them to wrest control of the two houses of Congress in the mid term election of 2009.

On Saturday Mrs Kirchner travelled to Rio Gallegos to spend ‘Father’s Day’ alongside her son Maximo and daughter Florencia. She was also expected to meet with her closest aides to define the re-election launch campaign and her running partner.

On Monday the Argentine president is scheduled to travel to Rosario to head the ceremony for National Flag Day at the city’s famous monument.

According to political circles quoted by the Buenos Aires press Mrs Kirchner has six potential names for the Vice-president post, three of them close officials and the other three promising provincial governors.

Among the first figure Manuel Abal Media, Communications Secretary; Presidential Legal and Technical secretary Carlos Zanini and Economy Minister, Amado Boudou.

The hopeful provincial governors include Jorge Capitanich from Chaco; Sergio Uribarri, Entre Ríos and Gerardo Zamora from Santiago del Estero, who is a Social-democrat and in 2007 became a close ally of the ruling Peronist catch-all movement, and more specifically the Kirchners Victory Front.

President Cristina Fernandez support stands over 60%, according to public opinion polls, while vote intention ranges between 43 and 45% sufficient to make it through the first round (40% plus ten point difference over the runner-up).

Other presidential tickets include Radical (Social-Democrat) Ricardo Alfonsin, son of former president Raul Alfonsin (1983/1989), who having moved close to conservative groups lost support from Socialists and other left forces that worked out a successful coalition in 2009.

Alfonsin is all polls figures as runner up but twenty points below Mrs Kirchner.

The Socialists have Santa Fe governor Hermes Binner as presidential hopeful with support from dissident Social-democrats and from other groups.

The Civic Coalition has Elisa Carrió as candidate but her group has broken with traditional allies to the left and centre. This is not the first time Ms Carrió is running but her chance remains limited, almost testimonial.

Former care taker president Eduardo Duhalde (2002/2003) and San Luis province governor Rodriguez Saa have launched their own campaigns unable to agree on an only ticket for the dissident (non-Kirchnerite) Peronists

Another ticket to be decided this week is that of left wing lawmaker Fernando ‘Pino’ Solanas under the name of “South Project”. However this is a candidacy with little prospects outside Buenos Aires City or the metropolitan area.

Finally for the first time since 1983 the hard left groups, mainly Trotskyites have managed to agree on a presidential candidate, Jorge Altamira.

Political analysts argue that the ‘winner’s aura’ created around Mrs Kirchner chances next October by her team has been successful but also point out that recent events could have an impact, mainly the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo mishandling of funds to build houses for the poor.

Another is last week’s scandal between the two top officials in charge of the institute against discrimination and both with close links to the president. Similarly with other pending corruption scandals but which have been given a low profile by a consenting magistrate who happens to have all the complicated cases.

But others argue that “no president in Argentina or the world for that matter” can miss re-election with an economy that has been growing sustainedly for the last 32 quarters.