Economy Minister Sergio Massa said today his party Frente Renovador (Renovation Front) will participate in the upcoming PASO primaries even if the Frente de Todos (FdT) ruling coalition declines to present only one candidate, a position Massa supports.

“I think the best thing for Argentina is unity. But if the decision is that there be primaries, sign us up and we’ll be there,” Massa said at his party congress in front of some 12,000 people.

Massa has made clear his opposition against the Frente de Todos having a primary election with multiple candidates many times, and even hinted that he would not run if that were the case.

In the Arenas stadium in Tortuguitas, Buenos Aires province, Massa today voiced his disagreement again with the idea of having multiple candidates. “Submitting a government force to a division confuses people as to what our path is,” he said. “We are still the government, we have responsibilities.”

However, he said that if is the decision, the Frente Renovador would put forth the best it has to offer and seek the best arrangements possible. “I am not looking for a job,” he said.

“I do not need a position to do politics. I do it for what I believe in, for the country I dream of.”

Massa did not define whether he’ll be the candidate, although he heavily hinted at the possibility.

Criticisms and a history lesson

Leaders of the entire political spectrum were expecting Massa’s speech after tensions surfaced yesterday when Frente Renovador deputy Cecilia Moreau refused to rule out the possibility of Massa resigning as Economy Minister.

Without naming him, Massa spoke about Juan Grabois, a left-wing presidential candidate in the Frente de Todos who yesterday said that, with his spiel about the FdT presenting a single candidate, he was “extorting people” with his resignation.

“We are not extorting or pressuring anyone,” Massa said today. “Don’t play the victim card, we are all adults here”

The minister also spoke against those “who, without any responsibility, talk as candidates without assuming this fragile moment forces us to have unity because we are still governing,” in what appeared to be a message against Ambassador to Brazil Daniel Scioli, another Frente de Todos candidate.

In addition to Grabois, Scioli, and Massa himself, other political leaders touted as potential FdT candidates are Buenos Aires Governor Axel Kicillof and Chief of Staff Agustín Rossi.

The minister also spoke against right-wing opposition coalitions Juntos por el Cambio (JxC) and Javier Milei’s La Libertad Avanza. He said JxC’s inner fighting is “Dantesque” and Milei’s dollarization proposal would mean “austerity measures and police repression.”

However, at the beginning of his speech, Massa had nicer words for Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, also without naming her.

“The invitation [to create the Frente de Todos] came from the generosity of the political leader with the most votes, who stepped down and opened her arms to create a space where everyone could participate.”

Massa walked away from his alliance with Kirchner in 2013. They remained apart until 2019, when they joined forces with other political parties to create the Frente de Todos coalition that would eventually defeat then-president Mauricio Macri.

“Unity, unity, unity,” Massa concluded.