The province of Buenos Aires, the most populous of Argentina and with the largest number of voters, holds on Sunday (7) legislative elections of unusual importance due to the dispute for power between President Javier Milei and Peronism, with attention aimed at the October national elections.
About 14.3 million citizens are summoned to vote to elect 46 deputies and 23 provincial legislature senators – half of the chairs of both chambers will be renewed – and members of the deliberative councils of the 135 municipalities of Buenos Aires.
Every election in Buenos Aires province always attracts attention for its demographic and economic weight, as the region concentrates 38.6% of the country’s population and contributes a third of Argentine GDP.
But not so much as on this occasion, for having acquired unusual relevance for several factors, including the bold decision of the governor of Buenos Aires, peronist Axel Kicillof, to perform this separated election from national legislatures scheduled for October 26.
In addition, Milei put the provincial election as a key battle in his goal of “annihilating” peronism, the main opposition force in Argentina.
The strategy of both sides has set up a very polarized campaign between Milei and Peronism, without debate of proposals, nor program, by candidates for provincial legislators belonging to about 15 competing political forces and that mostly voters are unaware.
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Peronist unit
The latest research foresees a triumph of the Peronist Front forces homeland, but tight, due to the rise expected of the Ultracereita Legend Freedom Advances (LLA), led nationally by Milei.
Research warns of a considerable percentage of undecided and analysts predict that there may be relevant abstention, although the vote is mandatory.
In addition to the chairs that each force can add to the provincial legislature, Sunday’s result will reveal largely with which support is Milei and the opposition to the October national legislatures.
Peronism, which has ruled since the end of 2019 in Buenos Aires province, has managed to set aside its internal differences and reach this election after trimming the edges between its three strands, led by former President Cristina Kirchner (2007-2015), Kicillof and former Economy Minister Sergio Massa.
The three leaders also sought to “nationalize” the campaign, shifting from the debate the provincial issues to summon the vote as an expression of discontent against the Milei government.
“It is necessary to brake so much insult, both interlocutory, both mistreat and disinal, and, above all, so many and so deep injustices,” said on Thursday, on the occasion of the campaign, Cristina Kirchner, that since June she has been disqualified to hold public office after being sentenced to six years for irregularities in the granting of road works when she was president.
Kicillof, one of the leading opposition figures in Argentina, also asked that, through the vote, Milei’s adjustment policies to be braked.
Milei, protagonist of the campaign
With only four years of existence, LLA has dedicated itself to the construction of political structures in the province, a task led by the secretary general of the Argentine Presidency and sister of head of state, Karina Milei.
In this, it was fundamental to establish an electoral alliance with the Republican Proposal (PRO), a conservative party led by former Argentine president Mauricio Macri (2015-2019).
Javier Milei, who is from the city of Buenos Aires – an administratively separated district of the province of the same name – took over the campaign in the territory of Buenos Aires, a peronian stronghold, with events not free of incidents and an aggressive speech against his detractors.
A week ago, the president was stoned at an electoral event in the city of Lomas de Zamora, where he had to be withdrawn, and last Wednesday led the closing of the campaign in Moreno, amid strong tension and confrontations between his supporters and residents of the locality.
The final stretch of the campaign was marked by the presidential veto to laws in favor of retirees and disabled, several decisions of the government contrary to the government, a complaint of corruption around the National Disability Agency that hits Karina Milei, market tensions and a stagnation of the economy.
Far from admitting any kind of political or economic slip of the executive, Milei accused the opposition of setting up “filthy operations” to destabilizing his government and shook the ghosts of possible fraud on Sunday.
