This is the New World Report with Ernesto Arojo and Joseph O'Mire, headline Reuters.

Argentine ex-president Macri says he will not be a candidate in upcoming elections.

Joseph, is this a blow to those who oppose Fernandez and Kirchner who have their troubles?

No, John.

Actually, this is somewhat of a blessing in disguise because, yeah, while President Macri

is a very popular figure, a known figure inside Argentina, he is probably the most beatable

of the candidates because they have ratcheted up a whole campaign against him from the moment

he was president.

So, I think Bertha Fernandez, he's not running for election, but the candidates that they're

putting up were hoping that President Macri was going to be able to be one of the candidates

that was going to oppose him.

But this also was because they were trying to fracture the opposition.

The opposition, Argentine has maintained some sense of unity.

They have coalitions, they even are not the same coalitions, but the coalitions have not

devoured each other as they do in other parts of Latin America.

And so, they were hoping that the President Macri, by him announcing himself as a candidate,

would have drove more polarization among the opposition.

And since he's now confirmed that he's not going to be running for a president of Argentina,

that's actually strengthened the other opposition candidates that have already announced.

And most notably, I'd say, would be Patricia Bullrich, who is the former minister of security

under President Macri.

And also Javier Malay, who is not part of that coalition, cojuntos por cambio, but he's

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