In the Spotlight: Hermes Binner

The elections are only 12 days away! The political scene is pretty calm, and President Kirchner, Cris, is treading lightly. As you can see in my previous post Gather ‘round its election time, there is hardly room for doubt that Cris has this election in the bag. The opposition is so freaked out that it’s resorting to changing the constitution to prohibit three consecutive presidential terms. Even though many think that there is no hope, I still think it’s important to know a little bit about all of the candidates. For brief descriptions, you can check out my Elections page. Today though, we’re going to get up close and personal with Hermes Binner (the candidate leading in the opinion polls and my personal favorite!).

Hermes Binner is the Socialist candidate for the Frente Amplio Progresista alliance and the current governor of Santa Fe Province. Binner was not a politician or involved in politics professionally before—he was a doctor specialized in anesthesiology. You know it’s funny, why was it so strange to me that a doctor, Binner, wanted to get involved in politics? I guess I thought it was just natural for lawyers to become presidents. In fact, since its return to democracy in 1983, Argentina has had only lawyers for presidents, except for Ramón Puerta, who was an engineer (but he doesn’t count since he was appointed president for 3 days during the 2001 crisis).

The Heartthrob VP Candidate: Amado Boudou

I finally saw the Minister of Economy Amado Boudou live last wednesday at the Americas Society-Council of the Americas’ (AS/COA) forum on political and economic development in Argentina. Along with various ministers and presidential candidates, Boudou addressed business leaders on the economy and of course, the vision of the current government on its future development. Although I missed his speech, I was able to relive the entire lecture through AS/COA’s live video footage.

After the speech was over, and administrative duties I had to attend to were coming to a close, I ran upstairs to the conference and found Boudou in full-on campaign action, giving an interview, buttering up the reporters. I was a mere three feet away from him and could not help but feel in awe—especially since he is the first famous politician I have seen in person, not to mention a gorgeous one. Amado Boudou is known for his charisma and jovial personality, even when it’s not election season. Many have seen him campaign by jamming out in front of swooning crowds in parks and even singing and dancing on national television. His love for national Argentine rock is no secret as before he took on economics, he used to organize concerts and events in music clubs in Mar del Plata, the city he grew up in.