Millionaires, construction and finance companies are among the primary donors supporting the Argentine President Mauricio Macri coalition reelection campaign.
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Legislation enacted just two months ahead of the Simultaneous and Mandatory Open Primary Elections (STEP) has opened the floor for sponsoring opportunities from legal, privately-owned entities.
The new law, a first for Argentina, came just in time for the primary elections and allows private donations of up to 4.5 million pesos. Lawmakers say it is among several legislations being introduced for transparency, by which it can avoid the scandals experienced during the Buenos Aires elections in 2015 and 2017.
However, as the elections near a close, data shows Macri’s Buenos Aires governmental representative Maria Eugenia Vidal’s campaign’s winnings amount to around ARS$6 million (US$134,820), gained by affluent admirers of the Argentine President Mauricio Macri coalition, Together for Change (Cambiemos.)
Among the most generous are Maxinta SA, a currency exchange company in the city; Jorge Milne, former bank president of the Banco Patagonia; Daniel Diego Van Lierde, president of the mining company Caleras San Juan.
So far, no formal complaints about irregularities with campaign contributions has been filed as of yet, although — with nine days left in the race, critics believe it could still transpire. According to statistics, only one percent of donations are formally reported to authorities, Pagina 12 said. The rest are usually left undeclared.