Macri, Mauricio, 1959–, Argentinian political leader. After graduating from the Catholic Univ. of Argentina, he was active in his family's businesses in the 1980s and 90s before becoming president of the Boca Juniors soccer club (1995–2008). A founder of the center-right Republican Proposal party, he was a member of Argentina's congress (2005–7), then served as mayor of Buenos Aires (2007–15). In the 2015 presidential election, Macri defeated Daniel Scioli, governor of Buenos Aires prov. and the ruling party candidate, after a runoff. His election ended 12 years of rule by Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. In 2016 he resolved the outstanding bond claims that remained from Argentina's 2001 default, enabling the country to sell bonds again on the international financial markets. He was strengthened politically in 2017 after his party won a plurality in the national congress, but lost popularity in 2018 as the country faced economic difficulties, sought aid from the International Monetary Fund, and was forced to adopt austerity measures. In 2019 he lost his bid for reelection to Alberto Fernández, the Justicialist candidate.
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