The scenario that many experts predicted for the primary elections in Argentinaa scenario in which the citizens’ votes were divided into three thirds, had an unexpected protagonist: the far-right Javier Milei was the candidate with the most votes in the entire political spectrum.
With almost 7 million votes, the libertarian economist, leader of the La Libertad Avanza formation, not only capitalized on the discontent vote of Argentine society, but also became the politician with the most votes among the candidates for the Presidency for 22 October.
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However, as the scrutiny progressed (95%), the advantages between his formation, which won with 30.17%, and the other two most voted for: the main opposition coalition, Together for Change (center-right), with 28.25%, and the official Unión por la Patria (Peronist), with 27.15%.
The PASO elections (primary, open, simultaneous and mandatory) held this Sunday in Argentina left the former Minister of Security in the Government of Mauricio Macri (2015-2019) Patricia Bullrich on the launching pad to try to become the third president of the country, after María Estela Martínez de Perón (1974-1976) and Cristina Fernández (2007-2015).
The “if it’s not everything, it’s nothing” candidate prevailed in the internal opposition to the mayor of Buenos Aires, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, whom he surpassed in more than 1.4 million votes.
Although the third force with the most votes was Unión por la Patria, the one that will be a candidate for the Presidency, the current Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, was behind Milei on the list of candidates, with almost 5 million votes, one million More than Bullrich.
Although he competed internally with the social leader Juan Grabois -who obtained 1.3 million votes-, Massa was a “consensus” candidate among the different families of Peronism: the sector aligned with the Argentine president, Alberto Fernández, the wing that answers to the vice president of the country, Cristina Fernández, and the Renewal Front itself led by Massa.
And, despite the socioeconomic circumstances that Argentina is going through, with almost 116% year-on-year inflation, close to half of the population living in poverty and an exchange rate gap close to 110%, Peronism obtained greater support than expected, while that Together for Change fell well below the 35% that many ventured.
In addition to Milei, Bullrich and Massa, obtained sufficient support to run for the presidential elections on October 22 the non-Kirchnerista Peronist Juan Schiaretti – with whom Rodríguez Larreta tried to make an alliance to integrate his candidacy, which cost him much internal criticism – and the candidate of the Left Front and Workers Myriam Bregman.