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Close race in Argentina election
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina -- Argentinians, battered by their worst economic crisis, go to the polls in a presidential election Sunday, with opinion polls suggesting a close race. There are 19 candidates, including former president Carlos Menem and former economy minister Ricardo Lopez Murphy. If no clear winner emerges, a second poll will be held next month. More than 60 percent of Argentina's 36 million people live in poverty, with many surviving on just $2 day and government handouts. Unemployment is officially 17 percent, but some economists believe it is 25 percent. Argentina, which 70 years ago was one of the world's richest economies, was plunged into crisis after it defaulted on $95 billion of debt last year. That forced the government to devalue the peso, which dived 70 percent against the dollar. The economic chaos, that began in 2001, unseated four presidents in two weeks. Caretaker President Eduardo Duhalde took office in January 2002 – after weeks of riots and looting that threatened to undermine 20 years of democracy. Duhalde has overseen election preparations and the slow recovery of the economy from its worst contraction in a century. But many Argentinians blame the political elite for the economic crash. "Most Argentines will vote with clenched teeth,'' Enrique, an unemployed sales manager, told Reuters. "I wish we didn't have to vote, but we do. We know none of the candidates are any good.'' The Peronists, a party that has dominated politics for 50 years, are split with three candidates -- 72-year-old Menem, left-of-center Nestor Kirchner and leftist Rodriguez Saa, who as a president for a week in 2001 declared a record sovereign debt default. Free market economist Lopez Murphy and anti-corruption legislator Elisa Carrio are the other main contenders. Memem is the favorite to win among the business community, investors and the wealthy, despite corruption scandals that blighted his 1989-99 presidency. He tamed hyperinflation in the 1990s and many hope he can save the economy again. On Thursday, polls showed Lopez Murphy ahead with 24 percent. Kircher had 17.7 percent and Menem 16.9 percent. The winner faces huge challenges to find work for the unemployed. A run-off will be held if no candidate gets more than 45 percent of votes, or if none gains at least 40 percent with the nearest challenger at least 10 points behind.
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