International

Argentina votes in bellwether legislative election

AFP

Argentinians choose new lawmakers Sunday in a vote that could determine President Alberto Fernandez’s ability to govern effectively for the remaining two years of his term, marked so far by economic hardship worsened by the coronavirus pandemic.

The mandatory vote for nearly half the Chamber of Deputies and a third of the Senate follow on September primaries in which Fernandez’s center-left Frente de Todos (Front of All) ruling coalition suffered a battering.

In shock results, Frente garnered only about a third of votes cast compared to nearly 40 percent for the center-right opposition group, Juntos por el Cambio (Together for Change), led by former president Mauricio Macri.

The September vote to pick candidates for Sunday’s elections revealed deep-seated disillusionment with the government of Fernandez, who said afterwards that “we must have done something not right.”

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The outcome unleashed a political crisis pitting Fernandez against his deputy president and coalition partner Cristina Kirchner, who pressured her boss into a cabinet reshuffle in the hopes it would help appease an increasingly-frustrated electorate.

Frente de Todos has 120 of 257 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, which is the lower house of Congress, with 124 up for grabs on Sunday.

It holds a majority of 41 out of 72 seats in the upper house, or Senate, which it will be eager to maintain, although analysts believe this is unlikely.

“If the results of the PASO (September’s primary) are repeated, the ruling party could lose its majority in the Senate,” said political analyst Rosendo Fraga of the New Majority think-tank.

“Not only would it not achieve a majority… but also lose seats.”

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– 40% poverty –

Critically, Macri’s Juntos grouping made great strides in September in the province of Buenos Aires, the country’s largest electoral district and considered a bastion of Fernandez’s party.

Fernandez took power from Macri in 2019.

But public discontent with his government has been growing in a country in recession since 2018 and registering a GDP drop of 9.9 percent last year amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Argentina has one of the world’s highest inflation rates, at 40 percent so far this year, and a poverty rate of 42 percent for a population of 45 million.

Last month, the government announced a deal with the private sector to freeze prices on more than 1,500 basic goods, following street protests demanding greater food subsidies.

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It has also increased the minimum wage and family allowances.

International

Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.

During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.

“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.

“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”

Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.

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On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.

International

Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition

he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.

Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”

International

Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may

The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.

The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”

The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”

Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.

The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.