Javier Milei Elected Argentina's President

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Facts

  • Self-styled anarcho-capitalist Javier Milei has been elected president of Argentina after he defeated Economy Minister Sergio Massa of the ruling Peronist coalition on Sunday in a significant shift for the country battling a crippling economic crisis.1
  • With 99.4% of the ballots tallied in the presidential runoff, Milei secured 55.7% against Massa's 44.3% — a margin wider than pre-election polls predictions and the widest since Argentina's return to democracy in 1983.2
  • Massa conceded defeat to Milei — the libertarian economist and first-term congressman who will take office on Dec. 10 — even before results had been released.3
  • The president-elect has promised to close the central bank, slash public expenditure, and dollarize the economy to deal with rising poverty, empty coffers, skyrocketing inflation, and the IMF's $44B debt program.4
  • However, it's unclear whether Milei will have the political support to carry out the drastic economic changes that have been pledged, as his Liberty Advances party holds just seven seats in the 72-member Senate and 38 seats in the 257-member House.5
  • Though he had campaigned as a libertarian, Milei has expressed socially conservative positions, such as opposing the legalization of abortion and discouraging trade with communist countries.6

Sources: 1The Wall Street Journal, 2Associated Press, 3FT, 4Reuters, 5The New York Times and 6Breitbart.

Narratives

  • Left narrative, as provided by The Guardian. Argentines have chosen to take a risky leap in the dark as they desperately seek to resolve the country's worst economic crisis in decades. There's a significant risk that Argentina and its democratic institutions will collapse under Milei's leadership, especially if the erratic populist makes good on his promise to radically try to transform the economy.
  • Right narrative, as provided by National Review. Argentina used to be one of the wealthiest nations in the world, but Peronism has destroyed the economy and badly damaged its democratic institutions over the past eight decades. Milei's victory represents the ultimate defeat of a corrupt system, as the nation wants real change and for the country to return to a path of normality.