Peronism Power Struggle in La Matanza

Buenos Aires Peronism is back in its favorite mode — fighting over who gets to inherit the machine. The immediate battleground is the 2027 race for governor, and La Matanza sits right in the middle of it. What changed this week is that the mayors’ side stopped hinting and started pushing openly for its own candidate and, if needed, a primary against La Cámpora’s pick. (lanacion.com.ar) ### Why is La Matanza the center of gravity? La Matanza is the biggest municipality in the Buenos Aires suburbs, which means it is not just another district — it is a vote factory, an organizer network, and a symbol of who really runs Peronism on the ground. (lanacion.com.ar) Fernando Espinoza has long treated that territorial weight as political currency, and now he is trying to spend it at the provincial level. (lanacion.com.ar) ### What happened now? A group of heavyweight mayors — including Espinoza in La Matanza, Jorge Ferraresi in Avellaneda, Julio Alak in La Plata, and Gabriel Katopodis in San Martín — has lined up against the idea that Cristina Kirchner or La Cámpora still gets the final word. Their move is pretty simple: put forward a mayor-backed candidate for governor and settle it in a PASO if there is no deal. (lanacion.com.ar) ### Why is that such a break? Because in older versions of Peronism, nobody serious in Buenos Aires moved before checking what Cristina wanted. That reflex is weaker now. Cristina still leads the party formally, but her legal troubles and reduced room to maneuver have convinced territorial bosses that this is the moment to challenge the camporista chain of command directly. (lanacion.com.ar) ### Where does Kicillof fit? Awkwardly. Axel Kicillof gave a green light to the idea that the dispute should be resolved in a primary, but he is also dealing with his own tensions with mayors who think his Movimiento Derecho al Futuro is too closed and too early in trying to define succession. Some of those mayors have even floated Sergio Massa or other local leaders as alternatives in 2027. (lanacion.com.ar) So Kicillof is not exactly the boss of this bloc — more like a necessary ally who also makes them nervous. ### Why does Ferraresi keep showing up? Because he represents the same thing Espinoza does, just from another district — municipal power that wants to stop being treated as campaign labor for other people’s projects. Ferraresi appears both in the mayoral challenge to La Cámpora and in the broader axelista orbit, which makes him useful as an organizer and dangerous as a rival broker. (lanacion.com.ar) ### What is Espinoza trying to build locally? A wider anti-Milei front that also helps his own next move. Since he cannot seek reelection as mayor in 2027, he has started opening his municipal government to figures from Pro and the Coalición Cívica, including Héctor “Toty” Flores. The message is blunt — La Matanza should be broad enough to win locally and strong enough to bargain provincially. (lanacion.com.ar) La Cámpora hates that logic in the district, which tells you the local truce is over. ### So what is the real fight? Candidate lists, succession, and veto power. The mayors are arguing that their districts carry far more votes than the municipalities controlled by La Cámpora, so they should decide the shortlist for governor. (lanacion.com.ar) That is the whole struggle in one sentence: who converts territorial muscle into the right to name the future. ### Bottom line? This is not just a neighborhood feud in La Matanza. It is a test of whether Buenos Aires Peronism will still be ordered from the top, or whether the big suburban mayors can force a new deal — one primary, one candidate list, and one post-Cristina balance of power. (lanacion.com.ar) (lanacion.com.ar)