These days, a vintage photo of Diego Santilli with Sergio Massa in the 90s went viral on the networks, posing together in a basic unit of the PJ when the two were part of the very large space founded by the General. As the joke that Perón himself repeated when the foreign press asked him about Argentine politics went: “In our country we have social democrats, liberals, socialists, Trotskyists, radicals, Christian democrats…”. “And the Peronists?”, they ended up asking him, to which he replied, amused: “Ah, no, we are all Peronists.” Peronism does not have a fixed ideology, but is the party of power and can include from a Menem to a Kirchner and from a López Rega to a Firmenich: they are all Peronists. Also Santilli, who continues to be so despite today leading a La Libertad Avanza ticket.
But how did “El Colorado” get to that place, apart from the detail of José Luis Espert’s carom that catapulted him to the first place on the list? What is known is that he comes from Mauricio Macri’s PRO, but what few remember is his previous militancy in Buenos Aires Peronism. I tell the story of his pass in some paragraphs of my book “Fernández & Fernández”, published in 2019, which I quote below.
Miguel Ángel Toma, at that time the new head of the city’s PJ, as well as head of the Duhaldist SIDE, was in negotiations to put together a unity list with Mauricio Macri, who in his political debut in 2003 was running for head of the Buenos Aires Government with his space Commitment to Change. The arrangement that Toma and Macri had reached was that two Peronist sub-35 promises would make up the yellow candidate ballot. They were Santilli and Christian Ritondo. The PJ had been left without a candidate in Buenos Aires territory because Daniel Scioli – the winner of the internal election – would end up accompanying Néstor Kirchner in the presidential ticket, so Toma proposed supporting Macri in exchange for those two places.
–I think it’s a good idea, let’s move forward –Macri approved.
–We have to hurry –Toma warned him– because the deadlines for presenting alliances are expiring.
From then on, Macri began to act distracted. He postponed meetings, didn’t answer calls, was denied on the phone…
–You agreed to this –Toma urged him when he was finally able to locate him–, and the deadlines have expired…
“Well, stay calm,” said the candidate.
–Look, there are legal elements to extend the presentation of alliances –the other warned him.
What Macri wanted, neither more nor less, was to have the formal support of the Buenos Aires PJ but without having to give up the two places on the list. He wanted it for free, a concept that does not exist in politics.
With 48 hours left until the submission of applications, and with no news, Toma called him again. The secretary attended to him.
“Look, the deadline is up, let Mauricio call me now,” Toma said.
But Macri never responded.
Hours later, when his attorney went to the court to present a list that did not know what had been agreed and did not include Santilli or Ritondo, he found the presentation of Toma, who had managed to extend the matter for two months. That is the deadline stipulated for these cases in which two allies do not reach an agreement.
“They didn’t accept my list,” the agent told Macri, who exploded on the other side of the line.
He was momentarily out of action. The following week, Toma received a call from one of the most influential operators in Argentine politics, the radical Enrique “Coti” Nosiglia, an old
friend of Mauricio’s father, Franco Macri.
“Listen to me, Mauricio is fucking with you,” Nosiglia told him.
Toma went on to explain:
–He accepted a deal to put two of ours on the list. And then he started acting the bear… What would you have done, “Coti”?
Nosiglia, an old fox, responded:
–The same as you, obviously. They’re not going to screw me.
They agreed to organize a meeting between both parties in the department of Nosiglia, who would act as mediator. Toma went with Ritondo. And Macri arrived accompanied by his campaign manager, Schiavi.
–Well, you kicked me forward –Macri reproached Toma.
“I didn’t screw you,” replied the other, “I have the face of an idiot but I’m not.” You didn’t comply and you ended up shooting yourself in the foot.
Macri tried it out:
–But would you be willing to maintain our alliance?
“Yes,” said the other, “because I have a say.”
The candidate sensed that support would now be more expensive than before:
–Now you are going to ask me for anything, right?
The Peronist answered:
–No, the same thing we had talked about.
Nosiglia, the mediator, looked at him surprised, as if telling him “take advantage.”
Toma repeated:
–I ask you the same, because I have my say.
And that was how the “peronchos” of the PRO, Santilli and Ritondo, arrived at the yellow space. Now, in 2025, they have already been painted purple.
But deep down they continue to vindicate the General.
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