The electoral defeat last Sunday unleashed a war without trenches within Peronism. Governors, mayors, and key figures in the movement directly blame Cristina Fernández de Kirchner for having intervened in the Justicialist Party and for concentrating all power within La Cámpora's circle.
The first to raise his voice was the governor of Salta, Gustavo Sáenz, who posted a harsh message on the X (Twitter) platform: "Mrs. Cristina, you intervened in the PJ of Salta, Jujuy, and Misiones to handpick La Cámpora candidates who would serve you and your son. The PJ is not a family business."
Gustavo Saenz desde Salta apuntó contra Cristina
He added in another post: "What happened in the country on Sunday is your responsibility."
His statements set the tone for what would become a week of crossfire. Far from backing down, Sáenz doubled down at a public event in Salta.
In front of a crowd, he once again targeted the convicted former vice president and her leadership: "On one hand, the lady came and intervened in the Justicialist Party. That is how she fared in the provincial elections. Now she is left with nothing at the national level," said the governor of Salta. He continued, "She had a national deputy, she no longer has one. She had two national senators, she no longer has them. They're not going to tell us what to do."
The message was interpreted as an open rebellion by the northern governors, who accuse Cristina of dismantling local structures to impose La Cámpora candidates with no territorial roots.
Máximo vs. Kicillof: the Buenos Aires rift
Meanwhile, in Buenos Aires, the tension between Axel Kicillof and Máximo Kirchner became evident again. During his speech at the Grand Brizo Hotel bunker, the governor thanked "the Buenos Aires mayors for their territorial work", a phrase that immediately caused discomfort for the leader of La Cámpora.
Reacción inmediata de Máximo Kirchner ante el discurso de Kicillof
The cameras captured the moment: Máximo furrowed his brow, crossed his arms, and looked down, visibly upset. The gesture, which quickly went viral, exposed the fracture between La Cámpora and the governor's circle, which seeks to distance itself from the Kirchner family's control.
A war for the scraps of power
The internal conflict can no longer be concealed. The governors hold Cristina responsible for the party intervention; La Cámpora blames Kicillof for the electoral split; and the mayors are moving to take control of the Buenos Aires PJ.
La condenada intenta mantener su poder desde su prisión domiciliaria
But behind the speeches, the dispute is pure survival. Kirchnerism once again demonstrates that it carries within its DNA the seed of its own destruction: while power is abundant, everyone is united; when society puts a stop to them, each one defends their own turf.
Far from a common project, today there is only a dismembered movement, with Cristina isolated at home, Kicillof battered, and Máximo ineffective. Far from rebuilding, Kirchnerism is consumed by its eternal internal struggle. This time, with no positions or funds to distribute, they do not even have the power to hide it.
