Argentina ? Argentine President Nestor Kirchner will not run for re-election in October, but his wife, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, will run for the office, government officials announced Sunday.

Kirchner’s cabinet chief, Alberto Fernandez, confirmed news reports published Sunday announcing that Cristina Kirchner, a senator representing Buenos Aires province, will formally launch her candidacy at a July 19 rally.

The announcement ended more than a year of speculation about which of the Kirchners would be the candidate of their Victory Front party in this year’s election, scheduled for Oct. 28.

The Kirchners have not publicly discussed why the president – who would be easily re-elected, according to most opinion polls – would not seek a second term. But he has experienced several setbacks in recent weeks, watching endorsed allies lose elections for Buenos Aires mayor and provincial governorships. Energy shortages and inflation have eroded his popularity, according to polls.

Some analysts suspect Cristina Kirchner’s candidacy could reinvigorate the government’s ruling coalition before the election, while allowing her husband to run for re-election in 2011. Term limits prevent more than two consecutive presidential terms.