Argentines Back Far-Right Outsider in Presidential Primary

Javier Milei, a far-right outsider in Argentina who has pledged to close ministries and slash spending if elected president, rocked the political establishment Sunday by beating out conservatives and the ruling Peronist coalition in a primary vote ahead of October’s elections.

With more than 80% of ballots counted, Milei, a congressman who says he would dollarize Argentina’s economy and dissolve the central bank, had 31% of the vote as he capitalized on anger against the political class. The country of 46 million people is living through its worst economic crisis in a generation, hobbled by inflation at 116%. Four of every 10 Argentines live in poverty, struggling to survive with a currency that is increasingly worthless.

“If we don’t change today, the only destiny will be to turn into the biggest slum in the world,” Milei said to his supporters in his closing campaign rally on Aug. 7. “I don’t want your vote so you give me the power, but to give you back your freedom so you can be the architects of your own destiny and we can end this state that makes us poor, with inflation and crime, and put the country on the path to growth.”

Milei, a long-haired, 52-year-old economist, rails against the ruling class in interviews and darts across the stage in speeches, promising to wash away both institutions and the politicians who are in office. He calls himself an anarcho-capitalist who would slash spending, cut taxes and end a bloated state.

“If the central bank emits money, it causes damage, if they move to control money, they cause damage,” he told The Wall Street Journal in an interview last year. “The only way for it not to cause damage is to do nothing, so why would I want them? I’d close it because it’s a risk if it’s operating.”

Milei stunned pollsters by receiving more votes than the traditional political coalitions on the left and right that have governed in recent years and failed to solve Argentina’s grinding economic problems.

“There is a generalized sense of disbelief at how well he did,” said Nicolás Saldias, an analyst at the Economist Intelligence Unit who closely tracks Argentina. 

The center-right opposition coalition, Together for Change, received about 28% support. Voters on Sunday selected Patricia Bullrich, a hard-on-crime conservative and former security minister, as the coalition’s candidate in the October election, which serves as the first of two rounds for Argentines to select their next leader. 

The ruling Peronists, which have governed Argentina for most of the last 75 years, received 26.69% support. The movement’s candidate will be the economy minister, Sergio Massa, who is considered more centrist and business-friendly than President Alberto Fernández and his vice president, Cristina Kirchner.

Milei attracted young voters in the poor barrios around cities such as Buenos Aires who are angered over the lack of jobs and constantly rising prices for food and clothes. Argentina has been unable to tame inflation and stop the peso currency’s fast depreciation after taking on a $44 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund in 2018 to avoid a currency crisis.

 “I voted for Milei because, like a majority of Argentines, I am tired of the same so I opted for resounding change,” said Aldana Gómez, an out-of-work office cleaner who calls herself “another of the unemployed majority.”

“I simply expect a change,” said the 22-year-old Gómez, who lives with her parents in a working-class district outside the capital. She said past governments “had their opportunity and that’s why the country is like it is—a disaster.”

Asked why he voted for the upstart Milei, César Vargas, a businessman, said: “It’s simple. I’m tired of being defrauded.” He said life has only gotten worse for Argentines in recent years. “I’m hoping for a more just Argentina, in the short-term, like the Chilean or Uruguayan model,” he said.

The results Sunday raise uncertainty for Argentina’s political system, which, despite the country’s economic upheaval, had been relatively stable in recent years while its neighbors were battered by social unrest and the rise of political outsiders. 

“Argentina is famous for its economic chaos, but to some degree earned this reputation as having a fairly predictable political system, and that’s no longer the case,” said Benjamin Gedan, an Argentina expert and director of the Latin America program at the Wilson Center.

Milei was able to tap Argentine anger though polls show that many voters don’t necessarily agree with his policy proposals, which include eliminating public education, creating a market for selling organs, expanding gun ownership and outlawing abortion. 

“The reality is that he channels the almost-universal anger in Argentina right now,” said Gedan. “And it has nothing to do with his policies.”

Milei faces an uphill battle to become president. His main rival in October appears to be Bullrich, pollsters say. She could attract many conservative and centrist voters in the general election who are concerned that Milei would go too far in overturning the country’s political and economic system, analysts say. 

Milei could also face pushback from investors who would be concerned about his ability to govern and pass overhauls needed to curb public spending and bring inflation down. Milei would likely struggle to pass legislation in an opposition-controlled Congress. 

And on the streets of Buenos Aires and other cities, he would face robust opposition from powerful unions and social movements who are quick to protest.

“If reforms are not carried out cautiously, you could have enormous social upheaval,” said Gedan. “There is a lot of discomfort among investors about Milei. The reality is that markets don’t like uncertainty.” 

If no candidate wins outright in October, the top two candidates will go to a runoff in November. A second-round vote without a leftist, Peronist candidate, as analysts expect, would be unheard of in Argentina.

“A runoff between Milei and Bullrich would be unprecedented,” said Sergio Berensztein, a pollster in Buenos Aires. “It’s a vote against inflation, and business as usual.”  

—Silvina Frydlewsky and Juan Forero contributed to this article.

Write to Ryan Dubé at [email protected]