2023 Argentine general election

2023 Argentine general election

Presidential election
← 2019 22 October 2023 (first round) 19 November 2023 (second round) 2027 →
Opinion polls
Registered	35,854,122 (first round) 35,405,398 (second round)
Turnout	77.14% (first round) 3.27pp 76.32% (second round) 0.82pp[1]
Nominee Javier Milei Sergio Massa Party PL FR Alliance LLA UP Running mate Victoria Villarruel Agustín Rossi Popular vote 14,554,560 11,598,720 Percentage 55.65% 44.35%
First round results by province and department Second round results by province and department
President before election Alberto Fernández FdT–PJ Elected President Javier Milei LLA–PL
Chamber of Deputies
← 2021 22 October 2023 2025 →
130 of 257 seats in the Chamber of Deputies
Turnout	77.01%
Party Leader % Seats +/– UP Germán Martínez 38.54 58 −10 JxC Mario Negri 26.60 31 −25 LLA Javier Milei 26.51 35 New Hacemos Juan Schiaretti 3.99 4 0 FIT – Unidad Nicolás del Caño 3.31 1 +1 Por Santa Cruz Claudio Vidal 0.23 1 0 This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
Senate
← 2021 22 October 2023 2025 →
24 of 72 seats in the Senate
Turnout	78.30%
Party Leader % Seats +/– UP José Mayans 43.66 13 +3 LLA Javier Milei 25.93 7 New JxC Alfredo Cornejo 25.62 2 −9 Por Santa Cruz Claudio Vidal 0.50 2 +1 This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below. Map showing the seats won by each party in each province.

Politics of Argentina
Executive President (List) Javier Milei Vice President Victoria Villarruel Ministries
Legislative Senate (List) Chamber of Deputies (List)
Judiciary Supreme Court Attorney General Council of Magistracy of the Nation
Law Constitution Human rights LGBT rights
Administrative divisions Provinces Governors Legislatures Departments
Recent elections Presidential: 2011 2015 2019 2023 Legislative: 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 Political parties
Foreign relations Ministry of Foreign Affairs Minister: Diana Mondino (list) Diplomatic missions of / in Argentina Nationality law Passport Visa requirements Visa policy
Argentina portal Other countries
v t e

General elections were held in Argentina on 22 October 2023 to elect the president, vice president, members of the National Congress, and the governors of most provinces. As no presidential candidate won a majority in the first round, a runoff was held on 19 November, in which Javier Milei defeated Sergio Massa to become President of Argentina.^[2] Incumbent president Alberto Fernández and incumbent vice president and former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, despite both being eligible for a second, consecutive term, did not seek re-election.^[3][4]

Advancing to the runoff, Massa of the ruling centre-left Union for the Homeland unexpectedly came in first place, winning 36% of the vote, against Milei of the right-wing Liberty Advances, who came in second place, with 30% of the vote. Massa's victory in the first round was seen as an upset because of the severe inflation that took place during Massa's tenure as Minister of Economy, as well as Milei's lead in polls up to that point.^[5]

In the runoff Milei defeated Massa with 55.7% of the vote, the highest percentage of the vote since Argentina's transition to democracy. Milei received over 14 million votes, which was the highest ever vote total in Argentina's history. In a surprise reversal of the first round, Milei outperformed polls, which had been calling for a much closer race. Massa conceded defeat shortly before the official results were published.^[6][7] Milei would later be sworn in as President of Argentina on 10 December 2023.^[8][9][10]

Observers generally saw Milei's win as a sign more of discontent with the status quo than support for his politics,^[11] and his victory was likened to that of Donald Trump in the United States and Jair Bolsonaro's in Brazil.^[12][13]

Background

In the 2019 general election, the Peronist, left-wing Frente de Todos ticket of Alberto Fernández, former Cabinet Chief, and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, National Senator and former president, defeated the center-right Juntos por el Cambio ticket of incumbent president Mauricio Macri and conservative Peronist National Senator Miguel Ángel Pichetto, exceeding the threshold to win the presidency in a single round. Macri became the first incumbent president in Argentine history to be defeated for reelection.^[14]

The first two years of the Fernández presidency were limited by the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina, during which he imposed strict lockdown measures in an attempt to suppress the spread of the disease,^[15] and a debt crisis.^[16] While the economy did recover in 2021–22,^[17] inflation rose to 100% (the highest since 1991).^[18] His approval ratings have been consistently low throughout his presidency, only on a few occasions has his approval rating been over 50%, with disapproval ratings from 60% to 80%.^[19][20] According to British newspaper The Economist, Fernández is "a president without a plan", and his presidency is a "weak administration",^[21][22] alluding to his lack of independent decision-making and under the heavy influence of Vice President and former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, also the leader of the coalition, whom Fernández himself described as a "permanent source of consultation."^[23] The 2021 midterm elections resulted in heavy losses for the Frente de Todos, which lost its majority in both houses of Congress. Observers attributed the loss to widespread anger over high inflation and rising poverty.^{[24][25][26][27]}

In April 2023, Fernández announced that he had decided not to seek reelection to the presidency in the 2023 general election.^[3] Others who refused to run were incumbent vice president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (who served as president between 2007 and 2015),^[4] and former president Mauricio Macri, who succeeded Fernández de Kirchner and preceded Fernández.^[28] Controversial constitutional amendments in Jujuy – a province governed by Gerardo Morales, who ran as a precandidate for vice president alongside Horacio Rodriguez Larreta– led to protests beginning in June where demonstrators stormed the Jujuy legislature.^[29][30]

The 2023 election was held amid a severe economic crisis with over 140% inflation and 40% poverty which observers said would negatively affect the ruling party's chance for another term.^[31]

Debates

Electoral system

President

The election of the president is conducted under the ballotage system, a modified version of the two-round system. A candidate can win the presidency in a single round by either winning over 45% of the vote or if they win 40% of the vote while finishing more than 10 percentage points ahead of the second-place candidate. If no candidate meets either threshold, a runoff takes place between the top two candidates.^[37] Voting is compulsory for citizens between 18 and 70 years old.^[38] Suffrage is also extended to 16- and 17-year-olds, though without compulsory voting.^[39] Both in the primaries and in the first and second rounds polls opened at 08:00 and closed at 18:00 (UTC −3), with vote results starting to show at around 21:00.^[40][41]

Congress

Chamber of Deputies

The 257 members of the Chamber of Deputies are elected by proportional representation in 24 multi-member constituencies based on the provinces (plus the City of Buenos Aires). Seats are allocated using the d'Hondt method with a 3% electoral threshold.^[42] In this election, 130 of the 257 seats were up for renewal for a four-year term.^[43]

Senate

The 72 members of the Senate are elected in the same 24 constituencies, with three seats in each. The party receiving the most votes in each constituency wins two seats, with the third seat awarded to the second-placed party. The 2023 elections will see one-third of senators renewed, with eight provinces electing three senators for a 6-year term; Buenos Aires, Formosa, Jujuy, La Rioja, Misiones, San Juan, San Luis, and Santa Cruz.^[44]

Presidential candidates

The following candidates participated in the Open, Simultaneous and Mandatory Primaries (PASO), which were held on 13 August 2023. The primaries determined the candidates of each coalition. Coalitions who received less than 1.5% of the votes will not be able to participate in the general election on 22 October.^[45]

Advanced to runoff election

Name Birth date and place			Prior experience	Party	Vice President	Coalition		Ref
Sergio Massa b. 1972 (age 52) San Martín, Buenos Aires Province			Minister of Economy (2022–2023) See more President of the Chamber of Deputies (2019–2022) National Deputy from Buenos Aires Province (2013–2017; 2019–2022) Mayor of Tigre (2007–2008; 2009–2013) Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers (2008–2009) Executive Director of ANSES (2002–2007) Provincial Deputy of Buenos Aires (1999–2002) 2015 presidential candidate under the United for a New Alternative coalition	Renewal Front	Cabinet Chief Agustín Rossi (PJ)		Union for the Homeland Member parties Justicialist Party Renewal Front Evita Movement Broad Front Victory Party Kolina New Encounter FORJA Concertation Party Patria Grande Front Solidary Party Federal Party Intransigent Party Communist Party Popular Unity Party of Culture, Education and Labour Revolutionary Communist Party Party of Labour and Equity	[46]
Javier Milei b. 1970 (age 53) Buenos Aires			National Deputy from the City of Buenos Aires (2021–2023)	Libertarian Party	National Deputy Victoria Villarruel (PD)		Liberty Advances Member parties Libertarian Party National Democratic Party Democratic Party Integration and Development Movement (Factions) Republican Force Federal Renewal Party Renewal Crusade Unite for Freedom and Dignity Neighborhood Confederation of Entre Ríos Pensioners and Youth Movement	[47][48]

Defeated in the first round

Name Birth date and place			Prior experience	Party	Vice President	Coalition		Ref
Patricia Bullrich b. 1956 (age 67) Buenos Aires			Minister of Security (2015–2019) See more National Deputy from the City of Buenos Aires (1993–1997; 2007–2015) Minister of Social Security (October–November 2001) Minister of Labour, Employment and Human Resources (2000–2001)	Republican Proposal	Former National Deputy Luis Petri (UCR)		Together for Change Member parties Republican Proposal Radical Civic Union Civic Coalition ARI Generation for a National Encounter UNIR Constitutional Nationalist Party Democratic Progressive Party Federal Republican Encounter	[49]
Juan Schiaretti b. 1949 (age 74) Córdoba, Córdoba Province			Governor of Córdoba Province (2007–2011; 2015–2023) See more Vice Governor of Córdoba Province (2003–2007) Federal Interventor of Santiago del Estero Province (1993–1995)	Justicialist Party	National Deputy Florencio Randazzo (HACER)		We Do for Our Country Member parties Socialist Party Christian Democratic Party Autonomist Party	[50]
Myriam Bregman b. 1972 (age 52) Timote, Buenos Aires Province			National Deputy from Buenos Aires Province (2015–2016) and the City of Buenos Aires (2021–present) See more Legislator of Buenos Aires City (2017–2021) 2015 vice presidential candidate under the Workers' Left Front coalition	Socialist Workers' Party	National Deputy Nicolás del Caño (PTS)		Workers' Left Front – Unity Member parties Workers' Party Socialist Workers' Party Socialist Left Socialist Workers' Movement	[51]

Defeated in a winning coalition in the primary elections

Name Birth date and place			Prior experience	Party	Vice President	Coalition		Ref
Juan Grabois b. 1983 (age 40) San Isidro, Buenos Aires Province			Leader of the Patria Grande Front	Patria Grande Front	Doctor Paula Abal Medina (FPG)		Union for the Homeland Member parties Justicialist Party Renewal Front Evita Movement Broad Front Victory Party Kolina New Encounter FORJA Concertation Party Patria Grande Front Solidary Party Federal Party Intransigent Party Communist Party Popular Unity Party of Culture, Education and Labour Revolutionary Communist Party Party of Labour and Equity	[52]
Horacio Rodríguez Larreta b. 1965 (age 58) Buenos Aires			Mayor of Buenos Aires (2015–2023) See more Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers of Buenos Aires (2007–2015)	Republican Proposal	Governor of Jujuy Gerardo Morales (UCR)		Together for Change Member parties Republican Proposal Radical Civic Union Civic Coalition ARI Generation for a National Encounter UNIR Constitutional Nationalist Party Democratic Progressive Party Federal Republican Encounter	[53]
Gabriel Solano b. 1974 (age 49) Buenos Aires			Legislator of Buenos Aires City (2017–2020; 2021–present) See more president of the Workers' Party (2019–present)	Workers' Party	Former Legislator of Buenos Aires City Vilma Ripoll (MST)		Workers' Left Front – Unity Member parties Workers' Party Socialist Workers' Party Socialist Left Socialist Workers' Movement	[54]

Defeated in the primary elections

Name Birth date and place			Prior experience	Party	Vice President	Coalition		Ref
Guillermo Moreno b. 1955 (age 68) Buenos Aires			Secretary of Domestic Trade (2006–2013) See more Under-Secretary of Production for the City of Buenos Aires (1990–1993)	Principles and Values Party	Secretary General of APOPS Leonardo Fabre (PyV)		Principles and Values Member parties People's Party Principles and Values	[55]
Paula Arias			–	Labour Party	Walter Vera (PL)			[56]
Carina Bartolini			–	Justicialist Party	Mabel Gómez (PJ)			[56]
Eliodoro Martínez			Leader of the CABA wing of the Action for the Republic	Action for the Republic	Vicente Souto (APLR)			[56]
Jorge Oliver			Journalist and political analist	Three Flags group	Ezequiel San Martín (Three Flags)			[56]
Manuela Castañeira b. 1984 (age 39) Paraná, Entre Ríos Province			Sociologist	New MAS	Teacher Lucas Ruiz (New MAS)		New MAS	[57]
Jesús Escobar b. 1971 (age 53) El Maitén, Chubut Province			Provincial Legislator of Neuquén (2003–2007; 2011–2019)	Freemen of the South	Former Santiago del Estero City councilwoman Marianella Lezama Hid (Freemen of the South)		Freemen of the South Movement	[58]
Marcelo Ramal b. 1954 (age 69) Buenos Aires			Legislator of Buenos Aires City (2013–2015; 2015–2017)	Workers' Policy	Teacher Patricia Urones (PO)		Workers' Policy	[59]
Nazareno Etchepare			Lawyer	Demos	Bachelor Fernando Lorenzo (DEMOS)		Liber.AR Member parties Unite for Liberty and Dignity Liber.AR	[60]
Ramiro Vasena			Political leader	Reconquest Group	Political leader Víctor Aníbal Lagonegro (Reconquest)			[61]
Raúl Castells b. 1953 (age 70) Rosario, Santa Fe Province			Leader of the MIJD	MIJD	Social activist Adriana Reinoso (MIJD)		MIJD	[45]
Santiago Cúneo [es] b. 1970 (age 53) Buenos Aires			Journalist and businessman		Falklands War veteran Gustavo Barranco (MIJD)			[45]
Mempo Giardinelli b. 1947 (age 76) Resistencia, Chaco Province			Writer, journalist and professor	Peace, Democracy and Sovereignty	Teacher Bárbara Solemou (PDyS)		Youth Project Member parties Humanist Party Youth Project Party National Liberation Movement Popular Consensus United for the South The Argentine Manifesto	[45]
Reina Ibáñez			Sex worker	TODEX	Gonzalo Ibarra (TODEX)			[62]
Martín Ayerbe			President of the Argentine Naval Forum Hipólito Bouchard	United Homeland	Hugo Rodríguez (United Homeland)			[63]
César Biondini			Lawyer	Patriot Front	Teacher Mariel Avendaño (FP)		Patriot Front	[45]
Raúl Albarracín			Provincial Legislator of Córdoba (2007–2011)	Neighbourhood Action Movement	Lawyer Sergio Pastore (MAV)		Neighbourhood Action Movement	[64]
Andrés Passamonti			Leader of the UCEDE (Buenos Aires)	Union of the Democratic Centre	Public accountant Pamela Fernández (UCEDE)		Union of the Democratic Centre	[65]

Opinion polls

Presidential election

First round

Second round

Results

Primary elections

President

Results by province, first round

Results by province, second round

Chamber of Deputies

Party or alliance				Votes	%	Seats
	Union for the Homeland		Union for the Homeland	8,252,357	33.62	48
			Civic Front for Santiago	378,246	1.54	4
			Más para Entre Ríos	293,605	1.20	2
			Front for the Renewal of Concord	252,335	1.03	3
			Unión por San Luis	83,178	0.34	1
			Renewal Front	38,770	0.16	0
		Total		9,298,491	37.88	58
	La Libertad Avanza		La Libertad Avanza	5,804,502	23.65	28
			Ahora Patria	305,397	1.24	2
			Republican Force	286,594	1.17	1
			Federal Renewal Party	152,853	0.62	1
			Arriba Neuquén	136,290	0.56	1
			Faith Party	126,879	0.52	1
			Republicanos Unidos [es]	30,534	0.12	1
		Total		6,843,049	27.88	35
	Juntos por el Cambio		Juntos por el Cambio	5,519,165	22.48	27
			Cambia Mendoza [es]	287,020	1.17	1
			Juntos por Entre Ríos	269,189	1.10	1
			ECO [es]–Vamos Corrientes	222,006	0.90	1
			Cambia Jujuy [es]	96,158	0.39	1
			Cambia Santa Cruz	18,595	0.08	0
		Total		6,412,133	26.12	31
	Hacemos por Nuestro País		Hacemos por Nuestro País	687,511	2.80	3
			La Fuerza de Santa Fe	184,680	0.75	1
			Partido Autonomista [es]	40,723	0.17	0
			Christian Democratic Party	17,603	0.07	0
			Unity and Liberty Party	16,323	0.07	0
		Total		946,840	3.86	4
	Workers' Left Front			798,396	3.25	1
	Together We Are Río Negro			60,259	0.25	0
	Por Santa Cruz			55,430	0.23	1
	Freemen of the South Movement			42,085	0.17	0
	Neuquén People's Movement			30,649	0.12	0
	Agrarian and Social Party			26,776	0.11	0
	Salta Independiente			22,818	0.09	0
	Somos Fueguinos			9,935	0.04	0
Total				24,546,861	100.00	130
Valid votes				24,546,861	88.90
Invalid votes				220,717	0.80
Blank votes				2,845,161	10.30
Total votes				27,612,739	100.00
Registered voters/turnout				35,854,122	77.01
Source: [66][67]

Results by province

Senate

Results by province

Mercosur Parliament

Reactions

Domestic

Milei defeated Massa in the runoff what was described as a historic election in Argentina.^[6] Milei in his victory speech vowed to begin "the reconstruction of Argentina" and end the country's economic decline.^[69] His prospective foreign minister Diana Mondino also announced Argentina would pause their accession to BRICS.^[70] Massa conceded and announced his retirement from politics after the runoff election results showed that he had lost by roughly 11 percentage points.^[71]

Incumbent and retiring president Alberto Fernández congratulated Milei: "I am a man of democracy, and I value nothing more than the popular verdict. I trust that tomorrow we can start working with Javier Milei to guarantee an orderly transition."^[72] Former president Mauricio Macri, who had endorsed Milei in the runoff, said: "I congratulate Javier Milei for bravely representing the will to advance and prosper that lives in the hearts of Argentines. He knew how to listen to the voice of young people and the fatigue of millions of neglected and impoverished people."^[72]

International

 Bolivia: Bolivian president Luis Arce wished success to Javier Milei and said that he would work hard to keep "firm relations" with Argentina. On the other hand, former president Evo Morales said that he would never wish success to "[Milei's] fascism, far-right and neoliberalism, who supports the Zionist genocide and Yankee imperialism."^[73][74]

 Brazil: Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva congratulated Milei without mentioning his name, saying: "Democracy is the voice of the people, and it must always be respected. My congratulations to Argentine institutions for conducting the electoral process and to the Argentine people who participated on election day in an orderly and peaceful manner. I wish the new government good luck and success."^[72] Former president Jair Bolsonaro congratulated Milei saying: "Congratulations to the Argentine people for Javier Milei's victory. Hope will shine again in South America. May these good winds reach the United States and Brazil so that honesty, progress and freedom come back to all of us."^[72]

 Chile: Chilean president Gabriel Boric congratulated Milei saying: "I salute Javier Milei for his victory and Sergio Massa for his worthy recognition of defeat. I wish the Argentine people the best and know that they will always have our respect and support. As president of Chile, I will work tirelessly to keep our sister nations united and collaborating for the well-being of all."^[72]

 China: Chinese president Xi Jinping congratulated Milei saying: "I am ready to work with President-elect Milei to continue the China-Argentina friendship, help the development and revitalisation of our respective countries through win-win cooperation, and promote steady and far-reaching development of China-Argentina relations." Milei thanked Xi for his congratulations, replying "I thank President Xi Jinping for the congratulations and good wishes. I send him my most sincere wishes for the Chinese people's wellbeing."^[75]

 Colombia: Colombian president Gustavo Petro lamented Milei's win, which was mocked by El Salvador president Nayib Bukele.^[2]

 European Union: Charles Michel, the president of the European Council, congratulated Milei saying: "Congratulations to Argentina's new president-elect Javier Milei for his victory. The people of Argentina have spoken in free and democratic elections."^[76]

Ilan Goldfajn, the president of the Inter-American Development Bank, congratulated Milei saying: "Congratulations Javier Milei, president-elect of Argentina. At the IDB, we are ready to continue our collaboration with the country and promote sustainable and inclusive economic development for the benefit of its citizens."^[72]

 India: Indian prime minister Narendra Modi congratulated Milei saying: "Congratulations for the victory in the Presidential elections. Look forward to working closely with you to diversify and expand India-Argentina strategic partnership."^[77]

 Mexico: Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador called Argentina's election of Milei an "own goal".^[78]

 Paraguay: Paraguayan president Santiago Peña congratulated Milei saying: "I congratulate Javier Milei for his victory and I offer Paraguay's cordial and brotherly hand to strengthen relations between our countries."^[72]

 Peru: Peruvian president Dina Boluarte congratulated Milei saying: "Peru expresses its warm congratulations to Javier Milei for his election as president of the Argentine Republic. Wishing him the greatest success in his administration, Peru renews its commitment to continue strengthening the historic ties of friendship and cooperation that unite our countries."^[72]

 Russia: Russian president Vladimir Putin congratulated Milei, despite the latter support for Ukraine in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov said: "We noted a number of statements that Mr. Milei made during the election campaign, but we will focus on and judge him mainly by the statements that he makes after the inauguration" while remaining supportive of the "development of bilateral relations with Argentina."^[79]

 Ukraine: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Milei on his victory and thanked him for his clear stance of support for Ukraine. Zelenskyy further stated that he looked forward to working together with Milei to strengthen Ukrainian-Argentinian cooperation and restore international order based on international law.^[80] Zelenskyy and Milei held a phone call where they discussed cultivating relations and Ukraine's war against Russia.^[81]

 United States: U.S president Joe Biden congratulated Milei and held a phone call with him, where Biden said that Argentina can count with US support. Milei told Biden that he would align with the US and Israel, while repeatedly saying that he would cool relations with China.^[82] Antony Blinken, the United States Secretary of State, congratulated Milei saying: "The United States congratulates Argentine President-elect Javier Milei on his victory in today's election, and we applaud the robust democratic process through which the Argentine public has spoken. The strong turnout and peaceful conduct of the vote are a testament to Argentina's electoral and democratic institutions. We look forward to working with President-elect Milei and his government on shared priorities that benefit the people of both countries, including protecting human rights and democracy, addressing climate change, and investing in the middle class."^[83] Jake Sullivan, the National Security Advisor, congratulated Milei saying: "I congratulate Javier Milei on his election as president of Argentina and to the people of Argentina for holding free and fair elections. We look forward to building on our strong bilateral relationship based on our shared commitment to human rights, democratic values, and transparency."^[72] Former president Donald Trump congratulated Milei saying: "Congratulations to Javier Milei on a great race for president of Argentina. The whole world was watching! I am very proud of you. You will turn your country around and truly Make Argentina Great Again!"^[72]

 Uruguay: Uruguayan president Luis Lacalle Pou congratulated Milei saying: "I salute President-elect Javier Milei. We have much to work on together and improve our bilateral relations."^[72]

 Venezuela: Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, reacting to the election results, declared that "the neo-Nazi extreme right won in Argentina, we call for reflection on the emergence of extreme right centers that seek to impose themselves to recolonize Latin America and impose extremist models".^[84]

References