Argentines Vote in Midterm Election Seen Weakening Government
By and- Voters elect half the lower house, a third of the senate
- Results expected Sunday night in test for ruling coalition
Argentines vote Sunday in midterm elections that are poised to weaken the ruling coalition’s power in congress.
Voters will pick half of the seats in the lower house and a third of the senate in a critical test for the government of President Alberto Fernandez. It lost the majority of races in a September primary vote, exposing a deep divide with Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and her hard-left wing of the coalition.
Mandatory voting for most adults starts at 8 a.m. local time and results are expected late on Sunday night. The key races are in the city and province of Buenos Aires, where the government’s Frente de Todos squares off against its main rival, the investor-friendly coalition of former President Mauricio Macri, Juntos por el Cambio.
Read More: Argentina Government Faces Midterm Backlash Amid Wrecked Economy
Fernandez isn’t on the ballot, but the vote will serve as a way for Argentines to weigh in on his term amid annual inflation of more than 50%, increasing poverty and lack of access to debt markets.
Sunday’s results stand to impact the makeup of Fernandez’s cabinet, economic policy, the coalition’s fragile unity and Argentina’s negotiations with the International Monetary Fund over more than $40 billion in debt it owes to the Washington-based organization.
Argentines’ confidence in the government is at its lowest level of Fernandez’s presidency as the country’s economic performance adds to coalition infighting and disillusionment over the handling of the pandemic, which included a vaccination scandal and an infamous birthday party held despite mandatory lockdown.
What Bloomberg Economics Says
“The vote will influence the balance of power within the government coalition. Should the results undermine President Alberto Fernandez’s bloc, it may also weaken Economy Minister Martin Guzman’s negotiating stance with the IMF.”
-- Adriana Dupita, Latin America economist
-- Click here for the full report
All eyes will be on the reaction of Kirchner, who herself governed the nation from 2007 to 2015 with anti-business policies and slammed the president’s muted response following the poor showing in the September primary vot
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