Cristina Fernandez De Kirchner

SÃO PAULO, Brazil — The former Argentine president Néstor Kirchner died on Wednesday morning after suffering a heart attack, according to Argentine state television.

Mr. Kirchner, 60, had complained of the flu a day earlier and had chest pains early Wednesday, according to Argentine news media. He was pronounced dead a little after 9 a.m. at a hospital in the southern Argentine town of El Calafate, in Santa Cruz Province.

The former president, who was originally from Santa Cruz, was visiting during a national holiday with his wife, the current president, according to Argentine news reports. In September, he underwent an angioplasty in Buenos Aires to open up a clogged artery, and in February he had urgent surgery to clear an obstruction in his carotid artery.

Elected in 2003, Mr. Kirchner guided Argentina out of its crippling financial crisis in late 2001 and had continued to lead the Peronist party after his wife, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, was elected president in 2007.

The former president, who was elected to Congress last year, was widely believed to be very active behind the scenes in running the country, especially the Argentina economy. And many political analysts were betting he, not his wife, would run for president again next year. His chances seemed to have been bolstered recently by the improved performance of the economy, which the Argentine Central Bank expects to grow by 9.5 percent this year, despite high inflation.