Sergio Massa is a man who, in his own words, currently wears two hats: that of Argentina’s Minister of Economy and that of the presidential candidate of the ruling party. He joined Kirchnerism 20 years ago, became a strong opponent of that same political current and later returned to it and now leads the campaign for former allies. Massa entered politics at a very young age and already in high school began to outline his path.
Sergio Massa comes from an Italian family that arrived in the country in the post-war period. “They are first-generation immigrants,” he told the Rebord Method podcast. He said that his mother, Luciana Cherti, from Trieste, in northern Italy, arrived in Argentina when he was 6 years old, and that her father, Alfonso Massa, from Sicily, arrived in Argentina when he was 11 years old.
The couple had two children, Sergio Massa, born on April 28, 1972, and his sister, who keeps aloof from the media. The Massas had a small construction company and the dream of every immigrant to improve their lives in their new country. “We brought the effort and desire to work”, declared Dona Luciana, the mother, in a documentary published on Massa’s YouTube channel.
The union and discussions between people from the north and south of Italy led Massa to know how to live amid divisions in family gatherings since he was a child, something that could be interpreted as a preface to his present in the polarized Argentine political scene.
In a defining moment of his childhood, his paternal grandfather observed Sergio’s interest in politics and warned him not to follow that path: “Don’t get into politics, politics is dirty”, his grandfather would have said, according to the memory of Sergio. Evidently, the current Minister of Economy and presidential pre-candidate did not follow the family advice.
From Student Travel Coordinator to Candidate
Massa’s youth was punctuated by politics. He remembers that, at age 11, he would climb on top of a bucket and imitate the speeches of the authorities that he saw on television. Already in his teens, in high school, he began to militate in the Unión del Centro Democrático party. In 1994, he interrupted his law studies at the University of Belgrano, which he only completed during the 2013 election campaign.
Massa tells that he had different jobs in his youth, working in construction with his father in the summer and interspersed with classes he taught in summer courses. He was also coordinator of traditional graduation trips.
Still in his 20s, he began to build a long career in public administration. It all started in 1999, when he was elected provincial deputy at just 27 years old.
He later held other positions in the executive and legislative branches. Between 2002 and 2007, he headed the National Social Security Administration (Anses), responsible for one of the government’s most important budgets.
In 2007, he was elected mayor of Tigre, a city in the province of Buenos Aires. Massa remained in that position until 2013, with a period of leave to occupy the chief of staff during the presidency of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, between 2008 and 2009, succeeding the current president Alberto Fernández.
The politician broke with Kirchnerism in 2013, and began a period in which he positioned himself as a strong opponent of this political force.
Argentina will hold primary elections on Sunday
During this phase, Massa severely criticized the former allies: “When in 2013 they wanted to impose the ‘eternal Cristina’ on us, we had the courage to stop it. If she reappears, we will stop her again”, she spoke during the campaign in 2017, referring to the current vice president and her cabinet mate.
In 2019, after a reconciliation, he returned to Peronism as a federal deputy for the province of Buenos Aires and held the presidency of the Chamber of Deputies. In 2022, he became Minister of Economy, and is now a pre-candidate for the presidency.
The meeting between politics and spectacle
Massa often makes public appearances with his wife, Malena Galmarini, whom he met when he was 24 and she was 21. The couple had two children.
Galmarini is president of the state-owned company Agua y Saneamientos Argentinos (AySA) and is a candidate for mayor of Tigre. By the way, Massa’s wife is the daughter of Fernando “Pato” Galmarini, a politician with a long career in the Argentinean public administration and who was part of the government of President Carlos Menem (1989-1999).
The connection led Massa to build what he calls a “family together, like União pela Pátria”, making a parallel with the political coalition of which he is part.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
