The gun was loaded with five bullets, according to the president. “A man pointed a firearm at her head and pulled the trigger,” he said in a national broadcast following the incident.
The alleged assailant, who authorities identified as a 35-year-old man of Brazilian origin, was quickly arrested by police and the weapon was seized, according to Reuters. NBC News has not verified the man’s identity. It was not immediately clear whether he has legal representation or what his motive might have been.
The president said it was “the most serious incident since we recovered democracy,” referring to the end of the country’s military junta in 1983.
“We can disagree, we can have deep disagreements, but in a democratic society hate speech cannot take place because it breeds violence and there is no possibility of violence coexisting with democracy,” the president said. “Our vice president has been attacked and social peace has been disturbed.”
Fernández called for an immediate investigation into the incident and announced Friday would be a national holiday in solidarity with his vice president.