People
The dozen figures who shaped — or were shaped by — Javier Milei's rise.
1. Karina Milei — “El Jefe”
Milei’s younger sister and closest confidante, whom he calls “El Jefe” (The Boss). As Secretary General of the Presidency she runs his political operation, controlled candidate lists, and is widely described as the government’s most powerful figure after the president himself.
2. Conan — the mastiff
Milei’s English mastiff, who died in 2017 and remains a fixture of his public storytelling. Milei has said the dog was like a son to him; clones of Conan — named after economists (Milton, Murray, Robert, Lucas) — live with him. A 2023 biography reported he consulted a medium to communicate with Conan; that account is reported, not confirmed by his office.
3. Luis Caputo — the economy minister
“Toto” Caputo, finance minister under Mauricio Macri, whom Milei appointed Economy Minister in December 2023. Architect of the fiscal adjustment, the peso devaluation, and the 2025 IMF program. Markets treat him as the credible face of the economic plan.
4. Victoria Villarruel — the vice president
Milei’s running mate and Vice President, a lawyer known for challenging the human-rights consensus on the 1970s dictatorship. Their relationship has been publicly strained at times; she presides over the Senate, where Milei’s laws live or die.
5. Sergio Massa — the defeated rival
Peronist economy minister and presidential candidate, defeated 44.35% to 55.65% in the November 2023 runoff. As minister he presided over 211% annual inflation in 2023 — the record Milei campaigned against.
6. Patricia Bullrich — the ally absorbed
Conservative presidential candidate (third place, 2023) who endorsed Milei for the runoff and became his Security Minister, fronting the hard-line security policy (“el que las hace, las paga”).
7. Manuel Adorni — the spokesman
Presidential spokesman and Milei’s public explainer-in-chief, who announced the WHO withdrawal and delivers the government’s daily line.
8. Mauricio Macri — the predecessor from the right
Center-right ex-president (2015–2019) whose PRO party split over Milei: Bullrich joined the government; Macri himself kept a wary distance while tacitly backing the reform direction. Milei’s project is often framed as the radical version of Macri’s gradualism.
9. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner — the antagonist
Two-time president and the dominant Peronist figure of the century, convicted of corruption in 2022 (sentence confirmed 2025). Milei defines his movement against kirchnerismo; she defines hers against him. Argentine politics’ central duel.
10. Donald Trump — the foreign ally
U.S. president, whom Milei calls a political ally and friend. Their alignment brought a promised $20bn U.S. support package ahead of the October 2025 midterms (conditioned by Trump on the result) and Milei’s CPAC appearances — including gifting Trump ally Elon Musk a chainsaw on stage in February 2025.
11. Elon Musk — the chainsaw recipient
The billionaire who amplified Milei on X, met him repeatedly, and received a chainsaw from him on the CPAC stage (National Harbor, Maryland, 20 February 2025) — the symbol of bureaucratic cutting, shared across continents.
12. Santiago Caputo — the strategist
Unrelated to Luis Caputo: the young communications strategist behind Milei’s campaign aesthetics and digital operation, often described as the government’s “third leg” alongside the Milei siblings.
Source notes
- Roles and relationships from Argentine press reporting (La Nación, Clarín, Infobae) and official government publications, 2023–2026.
- Election figures from the Cámara Nacional Electoral via Reuters/AP.