Facundo Manes with the Radical Pampas winners / Twitter
The victory in the PASO de La Pampa generated great optimism among the leaders of the UCR, who for a few hours left behind the internal supporters and went out to “mark the field” for their PRO partners, highlighting the influence of the territorial power of the centenary party which, they argue, will be essential when in October Juntos por el Cambio competes with Peronism for the presidential election.
The victory last Sunday of deputy Martín Berhongaray over his counterpart Martín Maquieyra (PRO) opens the illusion that radicalism can win this district in the gubernatorial elections on May 14. But the result also serves to strengthen the party leaders in the face of the negotiations with the PRO for the assembly of the presidential forum.
Although separately, on Sunday night Senator Martín Lousteau, leader of Evolución, the internal party line to which the winner of the primaries in said province ascribes, and also Facundo Manes, one of the presidential candidates of the space. Both disagree with each other in relation to presenting a formula of Together for Change with a man from the PRO and another from the UCR.
That same night, the neurologist recorded a video for his networks together with Berhongaray, whom he introduced as the “future governor” of the Pampas and then sent a message to the “yellow party” noting that in said elections “it confirms what we have been saying for months, that radicalism has a leadership position in the opposition coalition. In this sense, he assured that “close candidates and without marketing like Martín encourage us to continue working towards the people and their needs”, in another elliptical criticism of the PRO electoral machinery that knew how to have Marcos Peña and Marcos Peña as “stars”. to the consultant Jaime Durán Barba.
The truth is that Manes has also had a silent dispute with Gerardo Morales, the other candidate for the presidency for the historic party, for weeks. It is that there is still no agreement in the Alsina National Street Committee on the way in which this dispute could be settled.
Away from these divergences, the governor of Jujuy referred to the victory in La Pampa and highlighted the value of the unity of the party that he has presided over since last December. He remarked that this victory “demonstrates that a united radicalism, with a project and convictions, receives the support of the people.”
The first electoral test of 2023 had a low turnout: almost 30,000 people voted. Meanwhile, in the centennial party they assessed that the provincial armed forces had not been affected by the media weight of the PRO figures: in recent weeks they had “lowered” Santa Rosa Mauricio Macri, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, Patricia Bullrich and María Eugenia Vidal to support Maquieyra.
Of course, the situation in CABA is different, where the “electoral weight” of the party founded by Macri has not yet been matched by radicalism. On the other hand, in the Province radicalism has more historical weight than the yellow party.
There is hope, meanwhile, that the UCR retains the governorships of districts such as Mendoza -senator Alfredo Cornejo is the favorite to beat Larretista deputy Omar de Marchi, as long as he does not “play” outside of JxC- and Jujuy and, at the same time, At the same time, he aspires to win the internal one that allows him to put up the candidate who competes with Peronism for the governorships of Córdoba and Chubut. Also conserve Currents.
In Córdoba, one of the countries with the most electoral weight, the deputy Rodrigo de Loredo, from Evolución, will have to dispute the candidacy for governor with Senator Luis Juez, with the macrismo of referee. And in Chubut, the head of the provincial UCR and mayor of Rawson, Damián Bliss, will measure forces with Senator Ignacio “Nacho” Torres, who has been stomping in that district.
