Argentina is preparing to hold general elections on October 22. Over 35.8 million Argentines will go to the polls to elect the country’s new president, vice-president, and 130 of the 257 members of the Chamber of Deputies for the period 2023-2027. They will also elect 24 of the 72 senators for the period 2023-2029.
Before the October elections, on August 13, the South American country will organize primary elections, known as the Primary, Open, Simultaneous and Mandatory elections (PASO), when the voters will select the candidates who will stand in the presidential elections. They will decide which parties will contest in the elections and which presidential ticket will represent each party if there is more than one option. According to a law approved in 2009, a presidential ticket should obtain at least 1.5% of the votes to run in the election.
The PASO elections are significant because they serve as the most accurate national survey to predict the voter’s preference for a candidate in the upcoming elections, and help political parties orient their campaign strategies for the elections.
In Argentina, in order to win the presidency outright, a candidate needs at least 45% of the votes or 40% of the votes and a difference of 10% over the second-place runner. In case there’s no clear winner, voters will return for a run-off on November 19. The new head of state and other officials will take office on December 10.
On June 24, the registration phase for the enrollment of presidential tickets who will compete in the PASO elections ended. A total of fourteen political parties will participate: Unión por la Patria, Juntos por el Cambio, La Libertad Avanza, Hacemos por Nuestro País, Frente de Izquierda y de Trabajadores-Unidad, Nuevo Más, Política Obrera, Libres del Sur, Frente Patriota Federal, Principios y Valores, Demos, Frente Liber,Ar., Paz Democracia y Soberanía, and Movimiento Izquierda Juventud Dignidad.
Here are the major candidates.
Union for the Homeland: Sergio Massa and Agustín Rossi vs. Juan Grabois and Paula Abal Medina
Unión por la Patria or Union for the Homeland is the new name for the ruling center-left Frente de Todos or Front for All coalition. After hours of negotiations, on June 23, the coalition announced that Economic Minister Sergio Massa and Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers Agustín Rossi would run as the only ticket in the presidential elections.
However, after the announcement, leftist social leader and lawyer Juan Grabois said that he would also run. He had withdrawn from the race to back Interior Minister Eduardo “Wado” De Pedro and former Chief of the Ministerial Cabinet Juan Manzur, when it appeared that they would be heading the ticket. But, when it was confirmed that De Pedro-Manzur would not be in the running, Grabois announced he would not withdraw his candidacy and would run together with the social activist Paula Abal Medina.
Therefore, the Union for the Homeland has two presidential tickets in the primaries: Massa-Rossi and Grabois-Abal Medina.
Centrist Sergio Massa has been serving as the Minister of Economy since August 2022. He is the leader of the Frente Renovador party, which joined the ruling coalition ahead of the 2019 presidential elections. In the past, he has worked with the opposition and his party has allied with parties from the opposition coalition, including former conservative president Mauricio Macri’s Cambiemos party. He has announced that if elected he would pay the country’s USD 44 billion loan with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). His candidacy has received the support of both President Alberto Fernández and Vice-president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, among other leaders.
Juan Grabois is a member of the Union of Workers of the Popular Economy (UTEP) and the founder of the social movements platform Frente Patria Grande. He is known for his work organizing marginalized informal workers as well as in defense of human rights. In recent years, he has been a part of human rights delegations to Colombia and Peru. During the 2019 elections, he contributed in building popular support for the Alberto Fernández-Cristina Fernández de Kirchner ticket. He has the support of the social movements and organizations that are part of the ruling coalition.
Together for Change: Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and Gerardo Morales vs. Patricia Bullrich and Luis Petri
The right-wing opposition Juntos por el Cambio or Together for Change coalition also has two presidential tickets. One is led by Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and Governor of Jujuy Gerardo Morales, and another by former Security Minister Patricia Bullrich and former deputy Luis Petri. Both Rodríguez Larreta and Bullrich are members of the Propuesta Republicana (PRO) party.
Horacio Rodríguez Larreta has been serving as the mayor of Buenos Aires City since 2015. Since the beginning, his management has been fiercely criticized by social movements who allege that under his watch, the city hasn’t done enough to protect the poor. In 2019, City Police officials violently repressed several social protests demanding measures to face hunger and poverty.
Patricia Bullrich was the Security Minister during the Macri government. During her term in office, she legalized trigger-happy use of firearms, thereby authorizing the state security forces to fire a gun at the least provocation and without facing consequences. She represents the far-right sectors of the coalition. She has promised that if elected, she would implement strong security policies and take a tough stance on protests.
Liberty Advances: Javier Milei and Victoria Villarruel
The far-right La Libertad Avanza or Liberty Advances coalition is going to the polls with legislators Javier Milei and Victoria Villarruel.
Javier Milei is a far-right economist and founder of the libertarian coalition. He and his party oppose social movements and their demands such as social welfare programs, Indigenous rights, climate rights, women’s rights, and LGBTQI rights. He has proposed that he would shut down the country’s Central Bank if elected. He has gained the support of voters who feel neither Union for the Homeland nor Together for Change had fixed Argentina’s economic problems.
We do it for our country: Juan Schiaretti and Florencio Randazzo
The presidential ticket of the centrist Hacemos por nuestro país or We do it for our country coalition is made up of Governor of Córdoba Juan Schiaretti and legislator Florencio Randazzo.
Juan Schiarettihas been serving as the governor of Córdoba province since 2015. He is a non-Kirchnerist Peronist. He supports the political ideals of Peronism and the human rights agenda, but disagrees with Kirchnerism on issues such as the role of the state. He is unlikely to win the elections, but his coalition could secure a good number of seats in the legislature.
Left and Workers’ Front – Unity: Myriam Bregman and Gabriel Solano vs. Nicolás del Caño and Vilma Ripoll
The left-wing trotskyist Frente de Izquierda y de Trabajadores – Unidad or Left and Workers’ Front – Unity coalition also has two presidential tickets. One is headed by legislators Myriam Bregman and Nicolás del Caño, and another by legislator Gabriel Solano and social leader Vilma Ripoll.
Myriam Bregman is a lawyer, human rights, and women’s rights activist. In the 2015 elections as well, she contested alongside Del Caño, but she was a vice-presidential candidate. Her coalition defends workers’ rights. They have strongly condemned the police repression against the ongoing protests by Indigenous people in Jujuy. She has promised to implement measures to reduce inflation and increase minimum wage.
Gabriel Solano is president of the Trotskyist Partido Obrero (Workers’ Party). He has vowed to increase minimum wage, build affordable houses and take measures to strengthen the country’s currency.
