Argentine Menem's comeback dreams crumble

BUENOS AIRES, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Former Argentine President Carlos Menem's dreams of a major political comeback faded after he was soundly beaten in elections for governor in his home province of La Rioja.

Menem, whose two-term 1989-1999 presidency ended in an economic recession and corruption scandals, had planned to run for president in October. 28 elections, whether or not he won in La Rioja.

But in today's edition of La Nacion newspaper, the 77-year-old senator appeared to discard a presidential campaign after yesterday's defeat.

''For the time being, I'm not thinking of another candidacy,'' Menem told La Nacion after he finished third in La Rioja, where he served three terms as governor before he became president.

Acting Gov. Luis Beder Herrera, who was backed by President Nestor Kirchner, won the election in La Rioja, a cattle-ranching province of about 300,000 people.

The La Rioja victory for a Kirchner ally is seen as good news for the president's wife, Sen. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who is the front-runner in the presidential race.

A Kirchner opponent won another gubernatorial race last night, in the cattle-ranching province of San Luis.

The Kirchners are critics of Menem's economic policies of privatizing state companies in the 1990s even though they all belong to the Peronist party.

Kirchner won the presidency in 2003, despite taking only 22 per cent of the vote in a first round, because Menem dropped out of the second round when polls showed he would lose badly.

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