Luder was also the Justicialist Party's 1983 presidential candidate, a National Deputy, one of Carlos Menem's defense ministers, and Argentina's ambassador to France.

The measure, combined with prior ones, was successful in quelling an insurgent campaign led by the leftist ERP in Tucumán Province, though it in practice extended a state of siege nationwide.

Luder was nominated candidate for president for the Justicialist Party during the 1983 elections that resulted in the return of democracy following nearly eight years of dictatorship.

The strong support of his candidacy by the CGT labor union could not compensate, however, for the Peronists' late start (the nomination was secured less than two months before election day), the rival UCR nominee Raúl Alfonsín's skillful campaign, or voters' bitter memories of Isabel Perón's chaotic tenure, among other problems.

He was appointed Defense Secretary by newly elected President Carlos Menem in 1989, but a cabinet shake-up on the heels of a crisis at the end of the year led to his replacement, whereby Luder was named Ambassador to France.