Cabinet ministers seeking office told to resign

Government ministers and officials seeking elected office in the upcoming PASO primaries and midterms have been told to resign their posts by the president.

Alberto Fernández said this week that the “ethical” choice is for candidates to resign, as they would not be able to fully concentrate on their existing roles while campaigning.

Two notable names on Frente de Todos’ PASO slates are the ministers of Social Development and Defence, Daniel Arroyo and Agustín Rossi, who this week launched congressional runs in Buenos Aires Province and Santa Fe Province respectively.

Public Works Minister Gabriel Katopodis will also be expected to step down, as will the head of the Federal Council for Social Policy Victoria Tolosa Paz, who will head the ticket in Buenos Aires Province – currently.

Arroyo, who said Thursday he would resign, said his decision to run would provide “legislative volume” for the work done by his Ministry. “We have done very important work. On the one hand supporting the social situation, we generated several programmes, the Tarjeta Alimentar [food card], the Potenciar Trabajo programme. That is why I am a candidate for deputy, it has to do with institutionalising these processes,” he said.

Rossi will head half of a split opposition ticket in Santa Fe, facing off against another slate of candidates backed by the government and provincial Governor Omar Perotti. The minister said he too would step down, though he also called on Perotti to seek a leave of absence from his gubernatorial role.

Tolosa Paz announced Thursday that she would resign her post at an event in Junín, saying ministers must be fully committed to their roles. “Those of us who accept [the decision] to represent a political space in an electoral process are aware that we must step aside, because it implies a burden and a challenge that is not compatible with the responsibility we assume when appointed to manage in the public function,” she said.