Marcos Peña (born March 15, 1977) is an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

politician, author and political scientist who served as

Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers The chief of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Argentine Nation (; JGM), more commonly known simply as the Cabinet chief () is a Ministries of the Argentine Republic, ministerial office within the Government of Argentina, government of Argentina t ...

during Mauricio Macri's presidency. Previously, he was Legislator of the City of Buenos Aires by

Commitment to Change Commitment to Change () was a centre-right political party in Argentina, principally active in the City of Buenos Aires. History The party was led by Mauricio Macri, businessman and chairman of Boca Juniors football club. The party was conceived ...

. He is one of the most important members of

Republican Proposal Republican Proposal (), usually referred to by its abbreviation PRO, is a political party in Argentina. PRO was formed as an electoral alliance in 2005, but was transformed into a national party in 2010. It is the major component of the Juntos ...

and led

Mauricio Macri Mauricio Macri (; born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. He has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding in 2005. He previously ...

's presidential campaigns of

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

and

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

Early life and education

Marcos Peña was born on March 15, 1977, in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

. Peña is the son of Félix Peña, a foreign trade specialist, and Clara Braun, an academic. He is the grandson of the Argentine physiologist, Eduardo Braun-Menéndez. He attended his first years of elementary school at Wayside Elementary School in

Potomac, Maryland Potomac () is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 47,018. It is named a ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, as his parents lived abroad. He returned to

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and completed high school in Buenos Aires. He graduated with a degree in political sciences from the Torcuato di Tella University.

Political career

While studying political science, Peña volunteered in the presidential campaign of José Octavio Bordón ( FREPASO) in 1995. He then worked ad honorem with his father in the Undersecretariat of Foreign Trade of the

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...

government, where he met

Gabriela Michetti Marta Gabriela Michetti Illia (; born 28 May 1965) is an Argentine politician and was Vice President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019 during Mauricio Macri's administration. She is the second woman to serve as vice president, 40 years after Isabel ...

. In 2003 he helped the gestation of

, which would later be

, popularly known as ''PRO'', a new party led by

in the City of Buenos Aires. That year, he was elected a

Legislator A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be appointed, or hereditary. Legislatures may be supra-nat ...

for the Buenos Aires City. In 2005, Macri appointed Marcos Peña as the first chairman of PRO's youth wing.

City of Buenos Aires

When

became mayor of Buenos Aires in 2007, Peña was designated General Secretary of the

City of Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

Chief of Cabinet

He was appointed as chief of communication for the

Mauricio Macri's campaign. He is considered one of the closest leaders to

and one of the Cambiemos figures in the presidential campaign. In November 2015, after being elected, Macri appointed him as Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers of Argentine Nation. After the victory, thanks to his advice, Mauricio Macri began to introduce political, social and economic changes gradually and avoid using shock therapy. On December 28, 2017, he ordered a press conference where he, Nicolás Dujovne,

Luis Caputo Luis Andrés "Toto" Caputo (born 21 April 1965) is an Argentine economist who is the current Minister of Economy under Javier Milei's presidency, having assumed office on 10 December 2023. He previously served as Minister of Public Finances fr ...

, and the president of the

Central Bank of Argentina The Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (, BCRA) is the central bank of Argentina, being an autarchic entity. Article 3 of the Organic Charter lists the objectives of this Institution: “The bank aims to promote, to the extent of its powers ...

, Federico Sturzenegger announced the change in inflation targets. Several economists repudiated the intervention of an independent institution that caused an acceleration in

inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...

and loss of reserves.

Personal life

In 2002, he married journalist Luciana Mantero, with whom he has two children. Peña was also a fellow of the CIPPEC organization and the Poder Ciudadano Foundation.

Writer

In May 2013 he presented the book “We are: An open invitation.” A series of stories compiled by him and Alejandro Rozitchner, which brings together testimonies of leaders, officials and militants of the PRO.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pena, Marcos 1977 births Argentine people of Spanish descent Argentine political scientists Chiefs of Cabinet of Ministers of Argentina Members of the Buenos Aires City Legislature Living people Politicians from Buenos Aires Republican Proposal politicians Macri administration cabinet members Torcuato di Tella University alumni