Milei Feels Misunderstood as His Online Momentum Fades and Questions Remain Unanswered

Javier Milei is struggling with a problem that his online political machine cannot easily solve: his image is shrinking rather than spreading. In provinces where about half the population supported him last year, his backing now stands at roughly 30% to 35%, according to the article.

The government has responded by turning to state-backed measures, including more accessible mortgage loans financed with retirees’ funds and higher pay for the lowest-paid workers in the private sector. The article portrays that response as a sign of political weakness. Private reports cited in the piece show mortgage lending fell 42% in the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2025, dropping from 20,000 loans to 11,000.

Only a limited number of consumer-facing sectors have seen formally registered wages outpace inflation. The government has also imposed a ceiling preventing wage increases from exceeding the inflation rate. That economic pressure has fed what the article describes as Milei’s familiar defensive response: an aggressive campaign against critical journalists, even as the condition of everyday household finances exposes another side of his economic model.

The digital strategy itself has become part of the contradiction. Santiago Oría, one of the government’s leading digital communicators, teaches at a training school for libertarian activists and has presented manuals on promoting government achievements and confronting journalists and Peronists. At the same time, the article says pro-government networks have relied on fabricated opinions or bots. It points to online replies supporting a libertarian filmmaker that appeared to carry the “Reply” label, suggesting they came from software rather than a person, and compares the practice with Fernando Cerimedo’s so-called bot farm.

The online audience appears increasingly tired. Consultancy Ad Hoc recorded a decline in the ability of Milei and 15 prominent libertarian users to set the agenda and drive public debate. Interviews with Milei on digital channels such as Carajo and Neura have also drawn fewer views and less impact this year. In August, eight subjects dominated online and traditional public discussion, with the government receiving increasingly negative treatment. Mortgage credit ranked among the worst topics, described as “very bad” to “terrible.”