Pro-Bitcoin Libertarian Javier Milei Takes Surprising Lead in Argentine Presidential Primary Election
Javier Milei, a libertarian candidate who supports abolishing the central bank and has praised Bitcoin (BTC), secured an unforeseen triumph by winning the primary presidential election in Argentina.
With 90% of the vote counted, Milei from the "La Libertad Avanza" party secured 30.5%. The "Juntos por el Cambio" and "Unidos por la Patria" candidates got 28% and 27%, respectively.
Pre-election polls did not anticipate Milei finishing higher than third.
Disheartened by the country's challenges, including 116% inflation and a severe cost-of-living crisis that has driven 40% of the population into poverty, Argentine voters are seen as "punishing" the dominant political parties by voting for Milei.
Former conservative President Mauricio Macri commented via Reuters, "Milei's growth is a surprise. This reflects people's frustration with politics."
Politically positioned on the far right, Milei garnered support from protest voters, especially cryptocurrency advocates.
Milei, appearing on various talk shows, has endorsed Bitcoin and crypto before and during his presidential campaign.
He labels Bitcoin and rivals like Ethereum as a "return of money to its original creator: the private sector."
He has criticized central banks as a "scam," accusing them of unfairly enabling politicians to burden citizens through inflation.
Although he supports cryptocurrencies, Milei doesn't advocate for Bitcoin's adoption as the official currency in Argentina, unlike El Salvador's approach.
Instead, he proposes the country should transition to "dollarization" due to its severe triple-digit inflation.
Given the polling dynamics, contenders are expected only to secure over 45% of the vote. Consequently, a general election will occur in October between the
Read more on cryptonews.com
