Mauricio Macri

Mauricio Macri
Born	Mauricio Macri 2/8/1959
Birthplace	Tandil, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Nationality	Argentine
Occupation	Politician, businessman
Known for	57th President of Argentina, Chief of Government of Buenos Aires, President of Boca Juniors
Education	Civil engineering (Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina); MBA (Columbia University)
Spouse(s)	Ivonne Bordeu (m. 1981; div. 1991), Isabel Menditeguy (m. 1994; div. 2005), Juliana Awada (m. 2010; sep. 2025)
Awards	President pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations (2017–2018)
Website	https://www.mauriciomacri.com.ar/

Mauricio Macri (born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as the 57th President of Argentina from 10 December 2015 to 10 December 2019. A figure who rose to national prominence through the unlikely intersection of business, football, and politics, Macri has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding and previously served as the 5th Chief of Government of Buenos Aires from 2007 to 2015. Before entering politics, he served as president of the football club Boca Juniors from 1995 to 2007, during which time he restored the club's financial health and competitive standing, raising his public profile considerably. Macri was a member of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies representing the City of Buenos Aires from 2005 to 2007. Ideologically, he identifies himself as a liberal conservative on the Argentine centre-right. His presidency focused on economic reform, including the shift from a fixed to a floating exchange rate, the removal of export taxes, the reduction of energy subsidies, and the reopening of Argentina to international markets. He also pursued an active foreign policy that included opposition to the government of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, closer ties with the United States, and a free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union. His tenure received mixed assessments: praised for anti-corruption measures and increased sovereign marketability, but criticized for failing to deliver material economic improvement for many Argentines. Since leaving office, Macri has remained an active and sometimes contentious figure in Argentine politics, particularly in relation to the government of President Javier Milei.

Early Life

Mauricio Macri was born on 8 February 1959 in Tandil, a city in the Buenos Aires Province of Argentina. He was born into one of the wealthiest and most prominent business families in the country. His father, Franco Macri, was an Italian-born industrialist who built a major business conglomerate, Socma, with interests in construction, automotive manufacturing, postal services, and other sectors. Growing up in a family deeply embedded in Argentine commerce and industry, Macri was exposed to the world of business from an early age.

A formative and traumatic episode in Macri's life occurred in 1991, when he was kidnapped and held captive for twelve days. The experience had a profound impact on his outlook and, by his own account, served as a catalyst for his eventual decision to enter public life. After his release, Macri began to consider a role in politics, seeking what he described as a way to contribute to improving Argentine society beyond the private sector.

Education

Macri pursued higher education in engineering, enrolling at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, where he trained as a civil engineer. He subsequently attended Columbia University in New York City for business school, further developing his expertise in management and finance. This combination of technical and business education would inform both his career in the private sector and his later approach to governance, where he frequently emphasized efficiency, modernization, and market-oriented policies.

Career

Business Career

Before entering politics, Macri was involved in the management of his family's business empire. He held executive positions within the Socma group, gaining experience in corporate leadership and large-scale enterprise management. His business background became a central element of his political identity, as he frequently presented himself as a practical manager capable of applying private-sector discipline to public administration.

President of Boca Juniors

Macri's first significant foray into public life came through football. He was elected president of Boca Juniors, one of Argentina's most popular and storied football clubs, in December 1995, succeeding Antonio Alegre. During his tenure, which lasted until December 2007, Macri oversaw a period of remarkable success for the club. He reestablished Boca Juniors' financial stability and the club won numerous domestic and international titles. The transformation of the club raised Macri's public profile substantially, introducing him to millions of Argentines who might otherwise have had little awareness of the businessman. He briefly returned as chairman of the club from February to June 2008, succeeding Pedro Pompilio.

Entry into Politics and PRO Party

Macri formally entered electoral politics in the early 2000s. In 2003, he launched the political movement Commitment for Change (Compromiso para el Cambio), a centre-right party that contested the 2003 election for Chief of Government of Buenos Aires. Although Macri was unsuccessful in that initial bid, the campaign established him as a credible political figure on the Argentine centre-right.

He subsequently developed the movement into a broader political party, which eventually became the Republican Proposal, known by its acronym PRO, in 2005. That same year, Macri was elected to the Argentine Chamber of Deputies representing the City of Buenos Aires, serving from December 2005 until July 2007. PRO became the primary vehicle for centre-right politics in Argentina, distinguishing itself from the dominant Peronist movement and positioning itself as a modernizing, pro-market alternative.

Chief of Government of Buenos Aires (2007–2015)

In 2007, Macri was elected Chief of Government of Buenos Aires, the autonomous city that serves as Argentina's capital. He took office on 10 December 2007, with Gabriela Michetti serving as his deputy, followed later by María Eugenia Vidal. He succeeded Jorge Telerman as chief of government.

Macri won re-election in 2011, establishing a new record for electoral support in the city. During his time as chief of government, Macri oversaw a series of urban infrastructure and modernization projects. Among these was the expansion of the city's cycling infrastructure, including the EcoBici bike-sharing program. His administration also pursued the construction of new grade separations for rail crossings, aiming to reduce traffic congestion and improve safety. Additionally, the administration dealt with upgrades to the Buenos Aires Metro system, although some procurement decisions, such as the acquisition of used trains for Line B, attracted criticism over cost efficiency.

Macri served as Chief of Government until 10 December 2015, when he was succeeded by Horacio Rodríguez Larreta.

Presidential Campaign (2015)

Macri ran for president of Argentina in the 2015 general election as the candidate of the Cambiemos (Let's Change) coalition, which brought together PRO, the Radical Civic Union, and the Civic Coalition. The election was notable for producing the first presidential runoff (ballotage) in Argentine history. Macri faced the ruling party's candidate, Daniel Scioli, in the second round and won, defeating the Peronist candidate and ending over a decade of Kirchnerist government.

Presidency of Argentina (2015–2019)

Macri was inaugurated as the 57th President of Argentina on 10 December 2015, succeeding Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. Gabriela Michetti served as his Vice President. In his inaugural address, Macri emphasized the themes of change, unity, and modernization, calling on Argentines to work together to build a better country. He also appeared on the balcony of the Casa Rosada to address supporters. Following the ceremony, Macri met with foreign delegations at the Palacio San Martín.

Economic Policy

The Macri presidency focused substantially on reforming the national economy. Among his first and most significant moves was the shift from a fixed exchange-rate system to a floating one, aimed at correcting what his administration viewed as unsustainable currency distortions inherited from the previous government. He removed taxes on agricultural and other exports, reduced energy subsidies to narrow the fiscal deficit, and lifted currency controls (known as the "cepo cambiario") that had restricted access to foreign exchange. These measures were intended to reopen Argentina to international markets and attract foreign investment.

Macri aligned the country with what analysts described as gradualist neoliberalism, preferring incremental reforms over shock therapy. His administration restructured sovereign debt, settling long-standing disputes with holdout creditors from Argentina's 2001 default, which allowed the country to return to international capital markets. The energy sector was liberalized, with the goal of increasing domestic production and reducing reliance on imported energy.

Despite these measures, the Argentine economy experienced significant turbulence during Macri's tenure. Inflation remained persistently high, the peso depreciated sharply, and the country was forced to seek a record-setting loan from the International Monetary Fund in 2018. The economic difficulties weighed heavily on living standards and eroded public support for the government. Shortly before the end of his term, Macri was compelled to reinstate some of the currency controls he had originally lifted, a move seen by many observers as an acknowledgment that the gradualist approach had not achieved its intended results.

A 2019 analysis by the Brookings Institution noted that Macri's economic program followed a "meandering road to stability and growth," highlighting both the ambition of the reforms and the challenges of implementation in a country with deep structural economic problems.

Foreign Policy

In foreign affairs, Macri pursued a reorientation of Argentine diplomacy. He moved to improve relations with the United States and Western nations, signaling a departure from the more confrontational stance of his predecessor toward Washington. He also strengthened ties within Mercosur and worked toward a free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union. His administration pursued closer relations with the Pacific Alliance, a trade bloc comprising Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru.

Macri was a vocal critic of the government of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, condemning human rights abuses and calling for a restoration of democracy. During the Venezuelan presidential crisis of 2019, Macri recognized Juan Guaidó, who had been declared interim president by the Venezuelan National Assembly, as the legitimate leader of Venezuela.

He also served as President pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) from April 2017 to April 2018.

During the first week of his presidency, Macri annulled the Memorandum of Understanding between Argentina and Iran, which would have established a joint investigation into the 1994 AMIA bombing, a terrorist attack on the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association in Buenos Aires for which Argentina blamed Hezbollah and Iran. The annulment was welcomed by the Argentine Jewish community and by Israel.

Environmental Policy

Macri's election prompted mixed reactions from Argentine environmentalists, who expressed both hope that new policies might improve environmental governance and skepticism about the administration's commitment to environmental issues given its pro-business orientation.

End of Presidency

Macri ran for re-election in the 2019 general election but was defeated by Alberto Fernández, the Peronist candidate, in the first round. He left office on 10 December 2019, marking a peaceful transfer of power.

Post-Presidency

After leaving office, Macri remained active in Argentine politics as the leader of PRO and a prominent figure in the opposition. His role became more complex with the rise of Javier Milei and his La Libertad Avanza movement, which drew support from some of the same right-of-centre constituencies that had backed Macri.

In October 2025, it was reported that Milei had restored dialogue with Macri after more than a year of political distance between the two, prompted in part by La Libertad Avanza's defeat in Buenos Aires local elections.

In May 2025, during the Buenos Aires city elections, Macri publicly denounced the circulation of a deepfake artificial intelligence video targeting him, which he attributed to pro-Milei online operatives. The Buenos Aires Electoral Court ordered the immediate removal of the video during the election blackout period. The incident led to a public exchange of insults between Macri and the Milei camp.

Also in May 2025, Macri publicly claimed that during a meeting in 2018, then-U.S. President Donald Trump had suggested that Argentina should "take over" Chile, an anecdote that attracted significant media attention.

In October 2025, Argentina's Supreme Court closed the ARA San Juan espionage case, confirming the dismissal of charges against Macri and former intelligence officials related to allegations of spying on the families of crew members of the submarine ARA San Juan, which was lost in 2017.

Personal Life

Macri has been married three times. He married Ivonne Bordeu in 1981; the couple divorced in 1991. He married Isabel Menditeguy in 1994; that marriage also ended in divorce in 2005. In 2010, he married Juliana Awada, a businesswoman; the couple separated in 2025.

Macri was kidnapped in 1991 and held captive before being released. The experience, by his own account, was a turning point that contributed to his decision to pursue a career in public service.

Recognition

Macri served as President pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations from April 2017 to April 2018, a rotating role held by the head of state of one of the member nations.

His presidency has been characterized by analysts as leaving a legacy of anti-corruption initiatives and increased Argentine sovereign marketability, while also being criticized for economic outcomes that fell short of expectations. The Brookings Institution described his economic program as a "meandering road to stability and growth," noting both the scope of his ambitions and the difficulties encountered in their execution.

In October 2025, the Argentine Supreme Court confirmed the dismissal of espionage charges against Macri related to the ARA San Juan case, effectively clearing him of legal liability in the matter.

Legacy

Macri's presidency represented a significant moment in Argentine political history. His election in 2015 was the first time a presidential contest was decided by a runoff ballot in the country, and his victory ended more than a decade of Kirchnerist government. As the leader of PRO, he built the first electorally competitive centre-right political party in modern Argentine history that was not affiliated with the Peronist movement.

Economically, his administration's policies generated extensive debate. Supporters credit him with reopening Argentina to international capital markets, settling the holdout creditor disputes, and pursuing fiscal discipline. Critics point to the sharp currency depreciation, persistent inflation, the necessity of a record IMF loan, and the reimposition of currency controls as evidence that his gradualist approach failed to address Argentina's deep-seated economic challenges.

In foreign policy, his reorientation toward the West and his opposition to the Maduro government in Venezuela marked a departure from the foreign policy of his predecessor and influenced the broader political alignment of South America during his tenure.

As of 2025, Macri remains an active figure in Argentine politics, navigating a complex relationship with the Milei government and continuing to lead PRO amid an evolving political landscape on the Argentine right.