Tens of thousands protest across Argentina against Milei's funding cuts to public universities

Tens of thousands of Argentines protested in major cities on May 13, 2026 against libertarian President Javier Milei's deep funding cuts to the country's tuition-free public university system, which has existed since 1949 and produced five Nobel laureates. University professors' salaries have declined roughly 33% in real terms since Milei took power in late 2023, driving at least 580 research professors from the University of Buenos Aires to leave for better-paying positions. Though Congress passed legislation to fund universities and raise teacher salaries, Milei's government has not implemented the law and is challenging it in court, arguing it fails to specify funding sources during fiscal austerity. The administration dismisses the protests as political while facing declining approval ratings amid slumping economic activity and rising unemployment.

University funding cuts

• ▪The university funding case is expected to go to Argentina's Supreme Court
• ▪Javier Milei's administration argues that the university funding legislation fails to specify how the state will supply the mandatory funding increases in a time of harsh fiscal austerity
• ▪Javier Milei's government has not implemented the university funding law as it challenges the legislation in court
• ▪Libertarian President Javier Milei has implemented funding cuts to Argentina's public university system

Public university system history

• ▪Argentina's public university system has been tuition-free since 1949
• ▪Argentina's public university system has produced five Nobel Prize laureates

Milei's austerity policies

• ▪Javier Milei has slashed public education funding as part of his plan to take a chain saw to state funding in a sharp break from what Javier Milei describes as decades of reckless spending that spawned corruption under left-leaning predecessors
• ▪Javier Milei routinely attacks university campuses as bastions of "woke" indoctrination
• ▪U.S. President Donald Trump is a powerful backer and ally of Javier Milei
• ▪Javier Milei faces declining approval ratings over slumping economic activity, falling wages and climbing unemployment

Corruption scandals

• ▪An investigation into lavish spending by Javier Milei's close ally, Cabinet chief Manuel Adorni, appears inconsistent with Manuel Adorni's modest public salary and declared assets

Protest turnout

• ▪The May 13, 2026 protest gathered people of all ages and political persuasions
• ▪Vast crowds in downtown Buenos Aires marched toward the government headquarters on May 13, 2026 to denounce budget shortfalls eroding the financial foundation of Argentina's higher education
• ▪Alejandro Álvarez, Javier Milei's undersecretary for university policies, criticized the May 13, 2026 march as "completely political"
• ▪Tens of thousands of Argentines flooded the streets of major cities nationwide on May 13, 2026 to protest funding cuts to the public university system

Economic impact on professors

• ▪Since Javier Milei took power in late 2023, university professors' paychecks have declined by roughly 33% after accounting for stubborn inflation, according to the main teachers' federation
• ▪Ricardo Gelpi, rector of the University of Buenos Aires, said the steep losses in purchasing power has driven at least 580 research professors in the engineering and science departments to ditch the public system for private universities or other better-paying jobs

Perspective of University protesters and educators

• ▪At least 580 research professors in engineering and science departments at the University of Buenos Aires have left the public system due to steep losses in purchasing power
• ▪University unions have rejected the marginal increases offered by Javier Milei's government as insufficient compensation for higher operating costs

Perspective of Javier Milei's administration

• ▪Javier Milei's administration contends that decades of reckless spending by left-leaning predecessors spawned corruption that necessitates harsh fiscal austerity measures