Nestor Kirchner

Former Argentine President Nestor Kirchner – the country's most powerful politician along with his wife, current leader Cristina Fernandez – died suddenly Wednesday after suffering from severe heart trouble, the presidency said.

Kirchner, 60, died after he was rushed in grave condition to the Formenti de Calafate hospital while suffering a severe heart attack, the presidency said.

"It was a sudden death," his personal doctor, Luis Buonomo, told reporters in El Calafate, where Kirchner and his wife had gone to rest and await their turn to be counted in the nation's census. Buonomo said an official medical report would be released later in the day.

He was accompanied at all times by his wife, the presidency said.

Kirchner, 60, had undergone an angioplasty after a heart attack in September, but was still a likely candidate in next year's presidential elections. He also served as secretary general of the South American alliance known as Unasur, as a congressman and as leader of the Peronist party.

The news shocked Argentines, who by law were staying at home Wednesday to be counted in the nation's census. Kirchner's supporters planned a mass gathering for Wednesday night outside the Casa Rosada, Argentina's presidential palace.

Kirchner worked hand-in-hand with his wife to mantain the ruling party's hold on power. Even more than Fernandez, he was seen as the heir to Argentina's strongman Juan Domingo Peron and one of the few people capable of managing Argentina's unruly and chaotic political scene.

With him gone, Fernandez is likely to face many new threats to her leadership.

"A great patriot has died," said Juan Carlos Dante Gullo, a ruling party congressman, to state TV. "This will leave a huge hole in Argentine politics. We will have to follow his example. Argentina has lost one of its greatest men."

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