Karina Milei, the power behind the throne in Argentina

“Nothing is free,” Karina Milei would say, over and over. The sister of the Argentine president made that clear from the outset whenever someone contacted her to request Javier Milei’s presence at an event, a talk, or any other activity. That’s what people who knew the Mileis in the years before he won the presidency recall — even when the far-right economist was a congressman.

As Milei gained fame through his extravagant television appearances, Karina began managing his schedule and, later, his income. “She kept 10% of everything he earned,” says a person who was close to them for nearly a decade and prefers to remain anonymous today. “Karina saw the business, saw how to monetize her brother. Javier was always the opposite; he never cared much about that.”

A low-profile woman who has barely been heard speaking in public, a figure inseparable from her brother, with enormous political influence and material ambition: this image of Karina Milei has become almost a cliché. It’s a portrait painted again and again by those who have interacted with or investigated her. In the past 10 days, in the light and shadow of a corruption scandal engulfing the Milei government, that description takes on another significance, like a portent threatening to come true.

In a series of leaked audio recordings, the ousted director of the National Disability Agency, Diego Spagnuolo — until recently a friend and personal lawyer of Milei — described the existence of a bribery network surrounding the state’s purchase of medicines. He claimed it included Karina Milei, secretary general of the presidency, and her close collaborator Eduardo “Lule” Menem, undersecretary of institutional management, among others. He also said that the president was aware of the irregularities but never acted. After several days of striking silence, Javier Milei has limited himself to responding that “everything is a lie” and that it is an operation by the opposition, ahead of the crucial legislative elections on Sunday, September 7, in the province of Buenos Aires.

The accusation, under judicial investigation, hits at the heart of the ultra-right government — at the intimate and inseparable bond between Milei and his sister.

Sibling power

“I’m going to explain to you why I give power to my sister,” Javier Milei shouted. The scene is recounted by journalist Victoria de Masi in her book La hermana. El jefe. La soberana (Karina. The Sister. The Boss. The Sovereign2024). “Javier had his phone in hand, waving it in the air. He had seen a post on Twitter referencing a comment circulating on social media that — without any proof — claimed he and his sister had an incestuous relationship. That’s what made him angry. ‘When I was a kid, one of the many times my father hit me, Karina stepped in between us. Karina defended me from the blows. And I saw, I saw, a light descend on her. A protective halo of light.’ Only two people witnessed that scene… and they also agreed on this: Milei ended up sitting in a chair, sobbing, his face buried in his hands. They had never seen a man cry like that.”

Karina Milei was born in Buenos Aires in 1973, when the future president was two and a half years old. A difficult childhood and a violent father somehow strengthened the bond between them. Before her brother became a public figure and she, his shadow, Karina studied advertising, earned a degree in public relations, and completed a postgraduate program in ceremonial and protocol. For more than 15 years, however, she worked as an administrative employee and secretary.

After failing as the owner of a tire shop, she turned to baking. At the same time, she explored what could be described as spiritual pursuits: tarot, family constellations, communication with animals, and related practices. By the middle of the last decade, her main role was serving as her brother’s secretary and assistant.

“Karina is the younger sister, but in practice she’s the older one; she’s his mother and father. She has an emotional monopoly on Milei,” notes journalist Juan Luis González, author of the biography El loco. La vida desconocido de Javier Milei y su irrupción en la política Argentina (El Loco. The Unknown Life of Javier Milei and His Entry into Argentine Politics).

An economist who worked with the president but is now disillusioned with Milei’s circle, observes something similar: “My feeling is that he always had a very unstable emotional life and feels safe with her. She’s his support; he depends on her a lot,” he says. “Karina controls access to Javier, and he is increasingly devoted to her,” he adds. “They don’t trust anyone; they have hardly any long-term friends.”

To appoint his sister as secretary general of the presidency — a position equivalent to a minister — Milei had to amend a law by decree that prevented him from placing direct relatives in public office. “Karina is the most important person in the government, not because of her title, but because she appoints and removes those who make decisions. To be in government, you have to be in Karina Milei’s good graces,” González explains, who is also the author of Las fuerzas del cielo (The Forces of Heaven). “Milei is interested in the economy and is the charismatic leader, but he openly says it himself: she is the boss.”

Karina Milei leads the political organization of a government that came to power almost two years ago without a party structure or representatives across the country. If Javier Milei delegates what in Argentina is called “la rosca política” — negotiations and agreements —to her, she, in turn, leans on the Menem clan, the family of former Peronist and neoliberal president Carlos Menem (1989–1999), whom Milei considers the best leader of Argentina’s democratic era.

Her main operatives in building the national presence of Milei’s ruling party La Libertad Avanza (Freedom Advances) are Undersecretary Lule Menem and the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Martín Menem, among other figures carrying a prominent surname in Argentine politics.

“Unscrupulous cashier”

Karina Milei and the Menem family are precisely the pieces under scrutiny in the alleged corruption case involving the Disability Agency — and that’s not the only case they have been accused of. Accusations of alleged improper charges have been piling up since the government took office.

In fact, they date back even further: the first claims, made by Milei supporters, concerned the virtual sale of candidacies for the 2023 elections, which could not be proven in court. That same year, the renowned goldsmith Juan Carlos Pallarols, who used to engrave the handle of the presidential staff, reported that Karina Milei asked him to pay $2,000 if he wanted a meeting with her brother.

In the provinces of Buenos Aires, Misiones, Santa Cruz, La Pampa, and Chaco, officials appointed by the government in the PAMI offices —t he institute responsible for healthcare for retirees — and the Social Security Administration (ANSES) reported that the president’s political operatives demanded a portion of their salaries as a contribution to fund the party organization. Former PAMI official and deputy Viviana Aguirre told the press that “Karina Milei is an unscrupulous cashier.”

Until the scandal over assistance for people with disabilities erupted, the corruption case that most affected Milei was related to the cryptocurrency $LIBRA, an alleged fraud promoted by the president. According to official records, it was Karina Milei who repeatedly brought the digital asset’s leaders to the Casa Rosada, the seat of government in Argentina. Leaked messages to the press revealed that one of the entrepreneurs behind $Libra, U.S. businessman Hayden Davis, boasted about being able to “make Milei tweet, hold in-person meetings, and promote it.” How? “I send $$ to his sister, and he signs what I say and does what I want.”

At the end of last week, Argentines heard Karina Milei’s voice. It wasn’t in a speech, but in newly leaked phone recordings to the press. It lasted a few minutes in which she said little to nothing, but the threat that there is much more has left the government paralyzed.

At the Casa Rosada, there is fear of friendly fire — of some dissatisfied lieutenant striking at Karina to punish Milei. The days ahead will undoubtedly be turbulent.

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