Massa or Milei? Where things stand in Argentina just hours from Election Day.
The most crucial election in the history of Argentina is upon us, and nobody has a clue which way it will go. The polls are even, but the country is divided. Massa represents the status quo, he’s aligned with Cristina Kirchner and represents her base in this election. Milei represents a change, he’s a self described libertarian and has pledged to rid the country of socialism, which he claims has led to the destruction of the nation.
First Round Results
Top two finishes by Sergio Massa and Javier Milei saw them both move on to a runoff election, or “balotaje” as it’s commonly referred to. Both candidates have also assembled a coalition of endorsements from various political parties and candidates.
Javier Milei has secured the key endorsement of Patricia Bullrich, who received nearly 24% of first round vote, but was unable to crack the top two. He has also secured the endorsement of former president Mauricio Macri, who leads the party Bullrich represents, stating on his X account, “Let’s give ourselves a chance to change. I vote for Milei, and, if you don’t want to abandon the battle and resign, I also ask you to vote for him.”
Bullrich’s endorsement could be the key to Milei’s victory. Her constituency is largely anti-kirchnerism, and pro free market. They are tired of the decadence of the nation, but elected for a more moderate change in the first round of voting.
Following the first round voting, Milei has pitched his message as a choice between “Kirchnerism or Liberty”. A continuation of a largely failing country or a chance at something different.
Milei came out of the first round of voting with the clear edge on momentum, but it has increasingly waned as he has received endorsements at a much smaller scale than Javier Milei. He will need to rely heavily on the 36% that voted for him in the first round and will also need to pick off voters from Bullrich and the various other candidates. Juan Schiaretti who received 6.79% of the first round vote refused to endorse Sergio Massa and actually disavowed him completely stating, “Massa is a Kirchnerist, and the most complete expression of the failure of Kirchnerism.”
But Massa is a seasoned politician and had a very strong debate performance last week. His skills were on display as he was able to isolate Milei and make the debate about Milei and certain comments he has made, instead of the failures of Massa and the current administration. This likely helped his chances as he was able to appear more moderate, in light of the far-left policies that his administration would keep in place.
Sergio Massa is the current Economy Minister and during his time has overseen the worst inflation in the history of the country. In a serious country, Massa wouldn’t even get 1% of the vote, but Argentina has a huge problem with socialism and they’ve subsidized 80% country to the point that people still vote for them because they don’t want to see their money taken away.
The choice is quite clear in the eyes of the rational world. Imagine rehiring someone who has failed you for 70+ years, and after he goes away you hire his son. It doesn’t make any sense, but this is what the country of Argentina has come to, and why the Western World should reject socialism completely. It is not worth it.