It was a month ago, all right. Javier Milei becomes president of Argentina. Since December 10, the new ultra-liberal head of state has done what he promised to do: nearly a thousand reform proposals to liberalize the economy and the labor code, privatize public sectors and limit possible protest movements. A shock of austerity that is not to everyone’s taste. The courts have already taken up several complaints against the reforms and the unions are calling for a national mobilization at the end of this month. And for the past month, a woman seems to have occupied the role of “first lady” of Argentina. Except that it is not Javier Milei’s wife but his sister.
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Karina Milei, 51, is the younger sister of her now-president brother. It is at his side that Javier Milei has celebrated his electoral victory, which he went to Congress to take the oath of office. Accompanied by Karina, Javier Milei drove through the crowd of supporters in a convertible through the streets of Buenos Aires and greeted his voters from the balcony of the presidential palace.
Wherever he is, his sister’s blonde mane is never far away, explains Juan Luis Gonzalez, author of El Loco“ The fool », an unauthorized biography about Javier Milei. For this Argentinian journalist, Karina is her brother’s “shadow”. “ Its importance in Javier Miley’s life dates back to their childhood. An extremely difficult time. Javier suffered violence and bullying from his father. He had no friends. Karina is the only person who accompanied him throughout his life. She has unfailing solidarity. And this is where Karina now draws her political capital: she has a virtual monopoly on many aspects of her brother’s life. As a bonus, she plays a very important role in the mystical side of Javier Milei. The president also says of his sister that she is the chosen one of God”.
Illustration with this interview that Javier Milei gave a few weeks ago to the Argentine cable channel America 24. “ Moses was a great leader. But he was not good at getting God’s message across. So God sent Aaron as a preacher. Well, Karina is Moses. And I am only the messenger”.
“ Karina occupies a central place, resumes Juan Luis Gonzalez, particularly since the death, in 2017, of Conan, Javier’s dog whom he considered his son. Karina took classes to become a medium and since then, she has ensured communication between Javier Milei and his deceased dog”.
Celia Melamed, Milei’s medium, broke the silence and confirmed that Conan had spoken:
“Conan is in very tight confinement. Accompanied by a time of this situation that Conan and Javier Milei live”, said in @dimension_carol
🤷♂️ pic.twitter.com/faIQMiMMy5
— Juan Luis González 🐜 (@juanelegonzalez) January 6, 2024
The architect of his electoral campaigns
But beyond the esoteric leanings of the Milei, Karina also occupies much more down-to-earth functions. In recent years, she has done several odd jobs. It was at the time when his big brother began his rise, first in the media as economist in high demand on television sets, then politics, with her election as deputy in 2021, which Karina was able to put her marketing and public relations studies to good use. She is the architect of her electoral campaigns, without ever speaking in public.
Anyone who wants to approach her brother must go through her. Javier Milei calls it el jefe: not THE but THE leader.
It is therefore not surprising that, barely coming to power, the new head of state appointed her to the post of secretary general of the presidency. The press and the opposition immediately cried foul. Since, as political science researcher David Compello explains, this position was until then “ prohibited to members of the president’s family. And Milei had to sign a first decree, authorizing him to appoint his sister to the general secretariat of the presidency “.
“ Karina Milei’s new role is very formal”, estimates journalist Juan Luis Gonzalez. “ Accompany the president, take care of daily administrative matters. But beyond that, she’s doing the same thing she’s done so far in the La Libertad Avanza party: being Miley’s guardian. She manages those around her, decides who enters the government or not. She watches over the president’s image and speech. With the exception of her brother’s favorite field – economics – she has an eye on absolutely everything. However, this does not make her the political brain of the new team in power. She simply doesn’t have the required knowledge. We must not forget that just two years ago, she was selling homemade cakes on Instagram and talking to dead animals..
Regardless, Karina is the only one Javier Milei trusts. Which makes her de facto the most influential person in her government.
