Argentina’s Former President Sentenced to Prison

Argentina‘s former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner has been sentenced to six years in prison in a Supreme Court ruling that permanently banned her from public office, marking a dramatic end to the career of one of the country’s most powerful and controversial political figures. Knewz.com has learned that in the aftermath of the ruling, Kirchner’s supporters poured into the streets of Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, in protest, blocking main roads into the city. Argentina’s current President Javier Milei celebrated the Supreme Court ruling on social media, writing, “Justice. Period.”

The Charges Against Argentina’s Former President

In its ruling, the Supreme Court confirmed a December 2022 corruption conviction that found that Kirchner had directed 51 public contracts to a close friend during her presidency. The contracts, awarded to construction magnate Lázaro Báez, were found to be overvalued by at least 20% in a scheme that cost the state tens of millions of dollars. According to reports, the Kirchner government carried out “an extraordinary fraudulent maneuver” that harmed the interests of the government and resulted in the embezzlement of roughly $70 million at the current exchange rate.

The Kirchner Presidency

During her eight years in office from 2007 to 2015, Kirchner was known for expanding welfare programs and increasing state spending to support the poor. However, critics say this came at the cost of ballooning deficits, rampant inflation and an unmanageable public sector. These long-term consequences fueled voter anger and helped radical libertarian Milei rise to power in late 2023 on a platform of slashing government waste and combating political corruption.

Banned from Running in the Fall Legislative Elections

The Supreme Court’s decision prevents Kirchner from running in this fall’s legislative elections, a major blow just days after she had announced her candidacy in Buenos Aires. The court has formally asked Argentina’s Security Ministry to prepare a detention facility, though her lawyer, Carlos Beraldi, has requested that she be granted house arrest due to her age. Kirchner rejected the Supreme Court’s decision and called the court justices “puppets” in a speech outside her party’s headquarters. “They’re three puppets answering to those ruling far above them. … It’s not the opposition. It’s the concentrated economic power of Argentina’s government,” the 72-year-old said in her speech. Her legal team, led by attorney Gregorio Dalbón, vowed to take the case to international human rights organizations. She also claimed that her defense did not have access to much of the evidence and that it was gathered without regard to legal deadlines.

Reaction of the Former President’s Supporters

According to reports, Kirchner once defined Argentina’s political left and is one of the country’s most influential and charismatic political figures. Protesting the Supreme Court’s ruling, supporters of her political movement also stormed the offices of Argentina’s two main cable networks, Channel 13 and Todo Noticias, which are widely considered critical of the former president, smashing televisions, vandalizing cars and shattering windows. However, no injuries have been reported yet.

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