The crisis in the Justicialist Party of Santa Fe is not only affecting local Peronism, but it also calls into question the leadership of Cristina Kirchner due to defections and increasing uncertainty close to the 2025 elections. The PJ, led by the former president, will face its first challenge on April 13 with the municipal primaries and the election of constitutional convention members to reform the provincial Constitution.
As the deadline for submitting lists approaches, uncertainty remains about who will be the party's main candidate for the reform discussion, as Senator Marcelo Lewandowski has declined to take that position despite Kirchner's offer. Sources from the Santa Fe PJ attribute the lack of primaries to a maneuver by radical governor Maximiliano Pullaro to take advantage of the division within local Peronism.
As the list closure approaches, the PJ of Santa Fe is fragmented by the departures of figures such as Omar Perotti, Ciudad Futura, and former Labor Minister Roberto Sukerman, who have decided to leave the party. Although negotiations are underway to choose the main candidate, names such as Diego Giuliano and Alejandra Radenas are being considered. The PJ is preparing to form alliances with six groups under the direction of Guillermo Cornaglia.
The crisis in Santa Fe Peronism not only poses internal challenges but also questions Cristina Kirchner's ability to unify the party in the face of the opposing proposal ahead of the legislative elections against Javier Milei's government. While Pullaro's ruling party strengthens, local Peronism seeks to reorganize itself with an important challenge: to participate in the constitutional reform without consolidated leadership.
"It must have been very difficult for Lewandowski to say no to Cristina," local Peronism sources commented, highlighting that the difficulties in reaching agreements on candidacies are related to still-open wounds from the 2023 electoral defeat. The fragility of Peronism in Santa Fe is reflected in the lack of leadership at a crucial moment for electing the party's representatives in the constitutional reform.
