Argentina's Milei wins show of support in Buenos Aires election

By Eliana Raszewski

Argentine President Javier Milei's government received a show of support on Sunday as his candidate took the lead in a legislative election in the city of Buenos Aires.

With nearly 96% of polling stations counted, Milei's list of candidates led by his spokesperson Manuel Adorni was leading the results for the local legislature with 30.14% of the votes.

Leandro Santoro, who had been the favorite in most polls and is aligned with the Peronist movement of former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, was trailing with 27.3% of the vote.

In third place with nearly 16% of the vote was Silvia Lospennato, the candidate from the PRO party, a former ally of Milei that is now competing with Milei for leadership of the center-right.

Sunday's election for half of the 60 seats in the capital's legislature was seen as the first important electoral test for Milei, a libertarian who took office in late 2023.

His administration had sought to frame Sunday's local election as a referendum on his government's national economic achievements, touting his success in bringing down inflation and securing the country's first budget surplus in 14 years last year, said Mariel Fornoni, political analyst at the consulting firm Management & Fit.

"That's the government's main asset," said Fornoni.

The outcome in Buenos Aires is considered an important step and indicator leading up to the national midterm elections in October.