2023 Argentine general election
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 run-off was held on 19 November, in which Buenos Aires Deputy Javier Milei defeated Economy Minister Sergio Massa by 11% of the votes, to become President of Argentina. 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.
Advancing to the run-off, 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 economy minister, as well as Milei's lead in polls up to that point. In the run-off, Milei defeated Massa with 56% 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 predicting a much closer race. Massa conceded defeat shortly before the official results were published. Milei was inaugurated on 10 December.
Observers generally saw Milei's win as a sign more of discontent with the status quo than support for his politics, and his victory was likened to that of Donald Trump's 2016 victory in the United States and Jair Bolsonaro's 2018 victory in Brazil. Milei expressed support and admiration for both figures, and endorsed Trump in the 2024 United States presidential election.
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.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, and a debt crisis. While the economy did recover in 2021–22, inflation rose to 100%. 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%. According to British newspaper The Economist, Fernández is "a president without a plan", and his presidency is a "weak administration", 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." 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.
In April 2023, Fernández announced that he had decided not to seek reelection to the presidency in the 2023 general election. Others who refused to run were incumbent vice president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, and former president Mauricio Macri, who succeeded Fernández de Kirchner and preceded Fernández. 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.
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.
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. Voting is compulsory for citizens between 18 and 70 years old. Suffrage is also extended to 16- and 17-year-olds, though without compulsory voting. Both in the primaries and in the first and second rounds polls opened at 08:00 and closed at 18:00, with vote results starting to show at around 21:00.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. Seats are allocated using the d'Hondt method with a 3% electoral threshold. In this election, 130 of the 257 seats were up for renewal for a four-year term.| Province | Total seats | Seats at stake |
| Buenos Aires | 70 | 35 |
| Buenos Aires City | 25 | 12 |
| Catamarca | 5 | 2 |
| Chaco | 7 | 3 |
| Chubut | 5 | 3 |
| Córdoba | 18 | 9 |
| Corrientes | 7 | 4 |
| Entre Ríos | 9 | 4 |
| Formosa | 5 | 3 |
| Jujuy | 6 | 3 |
| La Pampa | 5 | 2 |
| La Rioja | 5 | 3 |
| Mendoza | 10 | 5 |
| Misiones | 7 | 4 |
| Neuquén | 5 | 2 |
| Río Negro | 5 | 3 |
| Salta | 7 | 4 |
| San Juan | 6 | 3 |
| San Luis | 5 | 2 |
| Santa Cruz | 5 | 2 |
| Santa Fe | 19 | 10 |
| Santiago del Estero | 7 | 4 |
| Tierra del Fuego | 5 | 3 |
| Tucumán | 9 | 5 |
| Total | 257 | 130 |
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.Presidential candidates
The following candidates participated in the Open, Simultaneous and Mandatory Primaries, 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.Reactions
Domestic
Milei defeated Massa in the runoff what was described as a historic election in Argentina. Milei in his victory speech vowed to begin "the reconstruction of Argentina" and end the country's economic decline. His prospective foreign minister Diana Mondino also announced Argentina would pause their accession to BRICS. Massa conceded and announced his retirement from politics after the runoff election results showed that he had lost by roughly 11 percentage points.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." 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."