Argentine President Mauricio Macri is predicted to narrowly win re-election against his main challenger, Peronist candidate Alberto Fernandez, according to a new poll published on Thursday.
With a difference of 2 percentage points, Macri was predicted to defeat Fernandez, whose running mate is populist former President Cristina Fernandez, according to the 2,000 voters polled online, by telephone and in person by local firm Management & Fit. The poll has a margin of error of 2.2%.
Macri and his running mate, moderate Peronist Miguel Angel Pichetto, would win 45% of the votes in an election run-off scenario in November, with the Fernandez ticket at 42.9%.
Macri’s time in office has been marred by economic turmoil. His 2015 campaign promises to kick-start Latin America’s third-largest economy have largely failed to materialize, with the economy shrinking 2.5 percent in 2018 and rolling 12-month inflation now more than 57 percent.
Alberto Fernandez has criticized Macri’s policies and vowed to “rework” Argentina’s huge financing deal with the International Monetary Fund for $56.3 billion. Though the Fernandez ticket has yet to announce a specific economic plan, they said they would tackle unemployment and the slump in industrial production.
Investors are wary of former President Cristina Fernandez due to her past economic policies.
REUTERS