August 28, 2025 | 03:52 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President of Argentina, Javier Milei, was forced to leave an ongoing campaign event in Lomas de Zamora, on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. He left the event after protesters pelted his vehicle with small stones, bottles, and other objects.
On Wednesday, August 27, 2025, Milei and members of his libertarian party, La Libertad Avanza, held a major campaign event ahead of two upcoming crucial elections. The province of Buenos Aires is expected to hold local elections on September 7, 2025. On October 26, 2025, the country will hold midterm elections for half of the 257 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and a third of the Senate seats.
These elections are seen as a major test for President Javier Milei, who has reached the midpoint of his four-year term. However, Milei is facing a harsh backlash over the dramatic shock therapy he has implemented on the country's economy. Milei's victory in the 2023 election rocked Argentina's political establishment. His administration has also been rocked by a bribery scandal involving his sister, Karina Milei.
As Milei and Karina stood on the back of an open pickup truck on Wednesday, waving to supporters and signing autographs, witnesses reported seeing objects being thrown at them. Protesters attempted to approach the vehicle Milei was traveling in and hurled items at him.
Presidential spokesperson Manuel Adorni shared an image on the X social media platform, with a circle highlighting something that appeared to be a stone thrown towards the president. "They could have killed anyone," Adorni said about the protesters as reported by Al Jazeera. "They don’t care about human life, and they’ll care even less about the country. The end."
Video footage shows the pickup truck speeding away to avoid the crowd. A protester held up a mock suitcase with Karina Milei's face on it and dollar bills sticking out of it. Other masses chanted, "Out with Milei!"
Milei himself used the incident to campaign on social media against "Kirchnerism," a left-wing political movement. "The empty-headed nutters throwing rocks resorted to violence again," he wrote in a post. "On September 7 and October 26, let’s say at the polls: KIRCHNERISM NEVER AGAIN."
Milei posted another writing, "Civilisation or barbarity."
Milei has taken dramatic measures to control Argentina's soaring inflation. He has made savings by cutting social safety net services, massive government layoffs, and massive deregulation.
He is known for campaigning with a chainsaw to symbolize his approach to government bureaucracy. However, critics warn that his efforts have only made Argentina's poorest citizens more vulnerable. Despite official statistics showing a decrease in inflation, unemployment, and poverty have increased.
On the other hand, his administration has been shaken by a bribery scandal. Karina Milei held a high position in Milei's government, as the president's general secretary.
However, audio recordings have captured Diego Spagnuolo, the head of the National Disability Agency and a close ally of Milei, claiming that Karina took a cut from government contracts intended to help the disabled. Milei fired Spagnuolo. When appearing in public, he denied the recording.
"Everything he says is a lie," Milei told journalists in Lomas de Zamora. "We are going to bring him to justice and prove he lied."
Javier Milei showed his solidarity with his sister by appearing at the demonstration on Wednesday. They stood side by side in the pickup truck.
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