In a move that shakes up the Argentine political landscape, Diego Santilli became the new Chief of Cabinet, replacing Manuel Adorni, who resigned amid a scandal over alleged illicit enrichment. The new official traces a political journey from Peronism to PRO and finally to the heart of Javier Milei’s libertarian government.
Santilli began his career in the Justicialist Party, but his real takeoff came when he joined Mauricio Macri’s PRO. There he served as a national senator between 2013 and 2015, and previously was Minister of Environment and Public Space of the City of Buenos Aires (2009-2013). In December 2015, he was elected deputy mayor of Buenos Aires under Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, and in 2018 he became Minister of Justice and Security of the City following the incidents before the Copa Libertadores final between River and Boca.
In the 2021 legislative elections, Santilli won a seat as a national deputy for the province of Buenos Aires with 39.77% of the vote, defeating the Frente de Todos. Two years later, he ran in the Juntos por el Cambio primary elections for governor of Buenos Aires but lost to Néstor Grindetti, who had Patricia Bullrich as his presidential candidate.
After Milei’s victory, Santilli supported La Libertad Avanza from his seat, although he remains affiliated with PRO. In the 2025 legislative elections, following the resignation of José Luis Espert due to the scandal over his alleged drug ties, Santilli headed the LLA-PRO alliance list and won with 41.43% of the vote. In November 2025, he became Minister of the Interior, replacing Lisandro Catalán, and from there began forging agreements with governors to bolster the government’s projects.
Now, Santilli arrives at the Chief of Cabinet position at a critical moment. His predecessor, Manuel Adorni, resigned after weeks of pressure over inconsistencies in his assets. The judiciary is investigating how he obtained money for travel and goods, such as an apartment in Caballito and a house in a gated community remodeled for 245 thousand dollars in cash, as well as trips to Punta del Este, Aruba, and the Llao Llao hotel. Adorni tried to justify himself by saying he worked 25 years in the private sector, but later admitted he saved «under the table» and invested 200 thousand dollars in cryptocurrencies, earning 300 thousand that he never declared.
President Milei, who had supported Adorni «to the very end,» finally accepted his resignation, although he had hinted he would kick him out if the judiciary found him guilty. With Santilli at the helm of the Cabinet, the government seeks stability while the shadows of the scandal have not yet dissipated.
che este santilli es un yiro politico de mierda del peron al pro y ahora chupandole las medias a milei la jefatura de gabinete se la dan como premio consuelo mientras los laburantes nos morimos de hambre con la inflacion que se vayan todos la izquierda unida jamas sera vencida 🚩
al fin un tipo con huevos santilli se mando con milei dejando a esos zurdos del pj atras para mi los kirchos y adorni son unos vendepatria este si sabe gobernar viva la libertad carajo