Argentine’s First Lady-Turned-President

Senator Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, wife of Argentina’s incumbent President Néstor Kirchner, was elected Argentina’s president on October 28. The husband will hand over the presidency to his wife accordingly.

In the election, among 27.1 million eligible voters, she garnered 44 percent of the vote after 60 percent of the votes was counted, According to the country’s election law, if one candidate garners more than 40 percent of the vote and is ahead of the competitor in the second place by more than 10 percentage points, the candidate’s victory is confirmed in the first round of the election.

After Elisa Carrio, the second-place finisher who got 22 percent of the vote, admitted his defeat, Cristina Fernandez’s election was virtually confirmed. She will be inaugurated as president on December 10. She said, “I accept the people’s support that helped me win by a large margin as their demand for a greater sense of responsibility and heavier obligations from me.”

lightee@donga.com