Karina Elizabeth Milei (Spanish pronunciation: [kaˈɾi.na e.li.saˈβ̞eð̞ miˈlei̯]; born 28 March 1972) is an Argentine politician, current General Secretary of the Presidency of the Argentine Nation since her designation by her brother the President of Argentina, Javier Milei on 10 December 2023.[1]
Karina Milei | |
---|---|
![]() Milei in 2023 | |
General Secretary of the Presidency of the Argentine Nation | |
Assumed office 10 December 2023 | |
President | Javier Milei |
Preceded by | Julio Vitobello |
Personal details | |
Born | Karina Elizabeth Milei 28 March 1972 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
Political party | Libertarian (since 2019) |
Relatives | Javier Milei (brother) |
Alma mater | Argentine University of Enterprise, University of Belgrano |
She was chief of her brother's presidential campaign during the 2023 elections. Javier Milei often refers to her as "The Boss" ("El Jefe" in Spanish, using the male form of the noun instead of the feminine "La Jefa"), always highlighting her as one of his main advisors.[2][3]
Life and career
editShe was born in Buenos Aires in 1972, two years after her brother, Javier Milei. They are the only children of the marriage of Norberto Milei and Alicia Lucich. Javier remained distant from his parents, with Karina being his only family member with whom he maintained contact for many years. According to CNN and the BBC, Javier suffered from bullying and domestic violence. Karina was at that time the only psychological support during his childhood.[4] Despite the hermeticism of Karina, in some interviews Javier confirmed some aspects of his relationship with her. He stated that their father subjected him to severe beatings and tried to seek protection from his sister.[5] Javier compared his sister with Moses, stating: "She is Moses, I am just a popularizer".[6]
She holds a degree in public relations from the Argentine University of Enterprise and also studied marketing at the University of Belgrano. Before she participated in politics with her brother, she was his finance manager. Karina also studied to be a pastry chef, sculptor and tarot reader, activities that she did as hobbies and work.[7]
The nomination of Karina as General Secretary of the Presidency on 10 December 2023, was made possible after Javier was inaugurated as President on the same day, and one of his first acts was the modification of a decree, that was passed by his predecessor Mauricio Macri, which prohibited the nomination of relatives of the President to Cabinet positions.[8]
After seven months in office, her disapproval rating, published monthly by the University of San Andres, was 56.1% negative compared to 35.5% favorable.[9]
She has no children nor a known partner. Her interest in esotericism, as well as her relationship with her brother Javier, rumors about her influence on him, on his political career and on his political positions, have attracted a lot of media attention in Argentina.[10]
References
edit- ^ "Sister, vice-president, girlfriend – the women in Javier Milei's inner circle". Buenos Aires Times. 6 December 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ "3 datos sobre Karina Milei, la hermana del presidente de Argentina a quien él mismo llama "El Jefe"" (in Spanish). BBC. 20 November 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ "Javier Milei le presentó a su hermana a Volodimir Zelensky con un frase en inglés: "She is the real boss"" (in Spanish). La Nación. 10 December 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ "¿Quién es Karina Milei, "El Jefe" de la exitosa campaña presidencial de Javier Milei?" (in Spanish). CNN en Español. 21 November 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
- ^ "Karina Milei, Argentina's ubiquitous new 'first lady'". Le Monde. 4 December 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
- ^ "Quién es Karina Milei, hermana pequeña y estratega del nuevo presidente de Argentina" (in Spanish). El País. 10 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
- ^ "Juan González: "Dios le dijo a Milei que se tenía que meter en política para luchar contra 'el Maligno'"" (in Spanish). Newsweek. 5 July 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
- ^ "Javier Milei limitó el alcance de un decreto de Mauricio Macri para designar a su hermana como secretaria general de la Presidencia" (in Spanish). Clarín. 11 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
- ^ "Las encuestas indican una alta insatisfacción con el Gobierno de Javier Milei" (in Spanish). La Voz de Galicia. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
- ^ "Milei posts bizarre list rejecting 'fake news,' denies having sex with his sister". Buenos Aires Herald. 11 November 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.