A regional poll published on Wednesday by the research agency CB Consultora Opinión Pública found that Argentine President Javier Milei ranks as the most popular head of state in South America.

The survey, conducted by the Argentina-based research agency across the region’s countries during the month of December, found that the Argentine libertarian president leads the charts, ending 2024 with an approval rating of 51.8 percent, making him both the highest-rated President in the region and the only one with an approval rating of over 50 percent.

Throughout his first year in office, Milei, who took office in December 2023, implemented a dramatic overhaul of Argentina’s bloated government institutions and enacted a series of drastic “shock therapy” measures and sweeping reforms to avert the collapse of the country’s economy and avoid a hyperinflation spiral. The policies successfully reduced inflation from 25.5 percent in January to 2.4 percent in November.