Backgrounder: Profile of Argentinean presidential candidates

Argentines voted on Sunday in a run-off election between the center-right opposition leader Mauricio Macri and Daneil Scioli, the hand-picked successor to outgoing President Cristina Fernandez.

The following are the profiles of the two presidential candidates.

Macri, the current mayor of Buenos Aires for the opposition Cambiemos group, was born on Feb. 8, 1959, in the city of Tandil.

With a degree in civil engineering from the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, he was born into one of the country's richest families as the son of entrepreneur, Franco Macri.

As the mayor of the capital since 2007, Macri often clashed with the Fernandez's administration.

A fan of the Boca Juniors football club, he was its president from 1995 to 2008, overseeing one of the club's most successful spells as it won domestic and international titles.

He called on every voter to "vote without fear," in response to the campaign of rival Scioli, who has sought to paint Macri's potential social plans as being "frightening" to Argentina.

He first became a national deputy in 2005 for the Republican Proposal party, before taking over as the leader of the Cambiemos alliance. He is married to the businesswoman Juliana Awada, with whom he has a daughter. He also has three sons from an earlier marriage.

In 1991, he was kidnapped by police officers in a spectacular affair that lasted 12 days, before being released after the kidnappers received an alleged ransom of 2.5 million U.S. dollars.

Should Macri win the presidency, he would have to work hard to recast his image painted by critics who said he is "a neoliberal, right-wing entrepreneur" who cares little for the poor.

During his campaign, he laid out his priorities as eradicating poverty, fighting drug trafficking and uniting all Argentineans.

Scioli, the current governor of the province of Buenos Aires, and presidential candidate for the ruling party Front for Victory Alliance, was born on Jan. 13, 1957 in the capital's districy of Abasto.

A firm defender of the policies of Carlos Menem, the country's president from 1989 to 1999, Scioli first became a national deputy in 1997 before becoming the Secretary of Sports and Tourism in 2001. In 2003, President Nestor Kirchner chose him as a vice-presidential candidate, which he held until he ran to become Governor of Buenos Aires in 2007.

He has led the Buenos Aires provincial government since 2007. Should he be elected president, he will have to face the challenge of uniting Argentineans, a country divided by 12 years of Kirchner's policies.

A fan of the Boca Juniors football club, he adores pastafrola, a type of sweet tart, which he regularly eats for breakfast or as a snack.

Married to former model Karina Rabolini, he suffered an accident in the 1990s during a boating competition, which led to the amputation of his right arm.

His campaign in 2015 has been marked by the slogan "We will maintain what needs to be maintained, and change what needs to be changed."

He has focused his campaign by calling on Argentineans "to unite to face a historic moment" and has sworn that, if elected, his policies would prioritize "the poor, the workers, the middle-class. and the young."

In the latter part of the campaign, he has stated that if his rival Mauricio Macri became president, what could happen in Argentina would be "frightening".

While no sitting governor of Buenos Aires has ever been elected president, Scioli has stated he is "confident that, when the moment arrives, the people will give me an opportunity...The times require someone with experience, someone who can build a consensus...someone with the ability to defend the successes and correct what has gone wrong".

In terms of foreign policy, Scioli has stated that "the agreements with China are very important for Argentina, as they will provide investments and financing that will help to rebuild the country's infrastructure and energy grid." Enditem