Far-right outsider takes shock lead in Argentina’s primary elections | Argentina

Far-right populist Javier Milei shook up Argentina’s political establishment on Sunday by emerging as the front-runner in primary elections to choose presidential candidates for October’s general election.

Milei, an admirer of former US President Donald Trump, says Argentina’s central bank should be abolished, believes the climate crisis is a lie, characterizes sex education as a ploy to destroy the family, believes the sale of human organs should be legal and flight to facilitate the possession of handguns.

Votes were still being counted late Sunday, but analysts agreed that the upstart candidate, who gained notoriety — and a rock-star-like following — by ranting angrily against the “political caste,” do much better than expected and is a real contender for the presidency. .

With about 92 percent of polling stations reporting, Milei had about 30 percent of the total vote, according to official results. The candidates of the main opposition coalition, United for Change, were on 28% and the current government coalition, Union for the Fatherland, had 27%.

Speaking at the election headquarters, Milei vowed to put an end to “the parasitic, corrupt and useless political caste that exists in this country.”

“Today we took the first step towards the reconstruction of Argentina,” he said. “A different Argentina is impossible with the same old people.”

Before the election, analysts had warned that a better-than-expected result for Milei, 52, would likely roil financial markets and trigger a sharp drop in the value of the Argentine peso, amid uncertainty over which policies economic policies he could implement if he were president.

While Sunday’s vote was officially to choose candidates for various political blocs, it was also seen as a national survey of where the candidates stand with Argentines ahead of the October election.

Milei, who is a deputy in the lower house of the Argentine Congress since 2021, was unopposed in the presidential primaries of his Liberty Advances party.

Initial results suggested Argentina has become the latest country in the region where voters are looking to an outside candidate as a way to express anger against traditional politicians.

Discontent is widespread in struggling Argentina annual inflation over 100%, growing poverty and a rapidly depreciating currency. Milei attracted support by calling on the country to replace the peso with the US dollar.

“I am very happy, we are looking for a change. We are tired of living like this,” said 19-year-old Franco Lesertessur as he celebrated in front of the Milei polling station in downtown Buenos Aires. “All the countries that have dollarized ended up moving forward and stopped having inflation.”

In the main opposition coalition, United for Change, voters also appeared poised to move further to the right, with former security minister Patricia Bullrich handily beating a more centrist contender, the mayor of Buenos Aires Aires, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta.

Bullrich made it clear that he would work with his competitor before October.

“As Argentines we live with anxiety, with fear, unable to dream, plan or live a normal life. But today we have reason to work together, to guide and lead a profound change in Argentina, a change that leaves corruption behind forever and paves the way to austerity,” said Bullrich.

Unió per la Patria took a beating from voters due to the poor state of the economy, finishing third in total votes. As expected, Economy Minister Sergio Massa became the coalition’s presidential candidate, handily defeating leftist Juan Grabois.

“We have 60 days to overturn this election,” Massa told supporters.

But in Milei’s big result, many voters sent a message that they were tired of the two coalitions that have dominated Argentina’s political scene for years.

The results “reflect people’s fatigue with political leadership, and the lack of solutions within the spaces that have been in power consecutively,” said Mariel Fornoni, director of Gestió i Fit, a political consultancy.

Fornoni said that during the campaigns, the political establishment “focused on their own group dynamics rather than addressing the real needs of the people”.

At the polling station in Milei, party leaders were excited as people celebrated outside, expressing optimism that support for their candidate would only increase heading into October.

“I like his ideas about freedom. His ideas don’t scare me. People are free to choose what they want,” said Orlando Sanchez, 26, a retail worker. “If criminals walk around with guns on their belts, why can’t a normal citizen have one legally and with the proper documentation? People are clearly tired of politics, of being constantly lied to.”