Buenos Aires Herald 
Buenos Aires city mayor and PRO presidential candidate Horacio Rodríguez Larreta announced this Friday that Jujuy Governor Gerardo Morales will be his running mate in the upcoming Juntos por el Cambio (JxC) primaries on August 13. They will compete against PRO member Patricia Bullrich and Radical Party candidate Facundo Manes for the coalition’s presidential nomination.
“Gerardo Morales will be my vice-president candidate to change the lives of all Argentines”, said Larreta in a presentation in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo. He also called Morales “a man of action, known for forging on, doing things.”
“He is a brave man, he does not waver when it comes to defending rights, while always trying to avoid situations of violence,” said Larreta, a reference to how Morales has handled the recent protests in Jujuy.
The possibility of Morales’ joining Rodríguez Larreta’s ticket had been rumored for some time. According to sources close to the BA city mayor, the announcement was scheduled for today, one day before the Saturday at midnight deadline to file all candidacies.
Who is Gerardo Morales?
Gerardo Morales is the governor of Jujuy, a province in northern Argentina, and also president of the Radical Civic Union (UCR, its Spanish acronym), one of the oldest parties in Argentina. He is part of a JxC center-right faction, especially in regards to how the right to social protest should be handled.
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On Thursday, Larreta himself hinted that the announcement would be coming soon. At an event at the Olivos Port, Larreta said his running mate should “share a passion for change, as well as a pushing onward attitude.”
By joining Larreta, Morales declined his own presidential aspirations for the UCR and decided to move forward as the running mate for the leader of another party, in this case, the PRO.
The Jujuy governor pointed out that this is the most appropriate political strategy for these upcoming elections, insisting on the convenience of “mixed tickets” with politicians from different parties of the opposition coalition JxC.
For weeks now, Morales has been facing a great deal of tension in Jujuy. In addition to a teachers’ strike demanding better salaries, a growing rejection of the provincial constitutional reform he was promoting also led to widespread demonstrations.
Violent protests erupted in the vicinity of the provincial legislature the day the reform was approved, which in turn unleashed a fierce repression by the provincial police.
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“We have received reports of what could be considered an improper use of force against individuals in the context of these protests,” said Jan Jarab, United Nations’ High Commissioner for Human Rights South America Regional Office Representative in a letter addressed to Jujuy Governor Gerardo Morales.
Morales rejected the accusations, taking to social media to voice his reasons. “It is shameful that a United Nations official lends himself to the political games being carried out in the country to generate violence, chaos and impunity,” he tweeted.
