BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – The local legislative elections held on May 18, 2025, in Argentina's capital, Buenos Aires, and the provincial elections on May 11 in Jujuy, Salta, Chaco, and San Luis, recorded their lowest voter turnouts in history. This reflects a profound crisis of political distrust and representation amidst the government's austerity measures and anti-labor reforms. In Argentina, where voting is mandatory, nearly half of eligible voters did not participate, leading to assessments that the public's growing political apathy and disillusionment, exacerbated since President Javier Milei's administration took office, have come to the forefront.
Election Results Amidst Voter Apathy
In the Buenos Aires City Legislature election, 30 of the 60 seats were contested for four-year terms, with only 5 of 17 parties and alliances securing seats. Notably, the Workers' Left Front-Unity (FIT-U) alliance succeeded in gaining representation.
The provincial elections held on May 11 in Jujuy, Salta, Chaco, and San Luis also saw remarkably low turnouts. Beyond the characteristic of being midterm elections, key reasons cited include an unusually fragmented election schedule and the abolition of primary elections. The elimination of primaries, a political maneuver by all traditional and capitalist parties, deprived smaller independent parties and class-struggle oriented parties of the opportunity to secure public advertising funds and broadcast time and space to convey their policies to the public.
Furthermore, most provinces opted to separate their local elections from the nationwide elections in October. Ostensibly aimed at preventing the waste of public funds and allowing provinces to focus on local issues, critics argue that the combination of primary election abolition and fragmented schedules disproportionately benefited incumbent provincial parties and those backed by major sponsors and corporations.
Provincial Election Results: Regional Characteristics and Left-Wing Gains
Jujuy Province: Jujuy, rich in lithium and mineral resources, was among the first to vote on May 11, along with Salta, Chaco, and San Luis. With Argentina's largest indigenous population, Jujuy was dubbed "the country's laboratory" due to the 2023 constitutional reform conflict. At that time, Governor Gerardo Morales (a member of the center-right Radical Civic Union, UCR) pushed through controversial anti-democratic reforms without public consultation, flagrantly violating conventions on indigenous and tribal rights and both provincial and national constitutional protections. This conflict saw left-wing parties, labor organizations, and indigenous rights groups confronting the mining industry, police repression, and the provincial government, escalating tensions over exploitation, pollution, autonomy, and fundamental legal protections. The conflict in Jujuy foreshadowed the privatization and militarization tactics of the Milei era.
In this election, the Workers' Left Front-Unity (FIT-U), composed of four Trotskyist parties, gained two additional seats in the provincial legislature, bringing their total to five. Alejandro Vilca of the PTS, a municipal sanitation worker and the first indigenous person elected to the Argentine parliament, led the campaign. Despite strong party organization and a grassroots campaign without corporate funding from traditional parties, FIT-U not only increased their legislative seats and vote share to 8.5% but also doubled their support in the provincial capital, San Salvador de Jujuy, with 12% of the vote, surpassing Peronists and securing a city council seat.
Chaco, Salta, and San Luis Provinces: In Chaco, only 52% of eligible voters participated, a decrease of 21% from the election two years prior and 14% from the 2021 midterm elections. The ruling UCR and President Milei's La Libertad Avanza (LLA) alliance secured 8 of 16 seats. Peronists, who garnered 43% in 2021 and 41% in 2023, managed only 33% of the vote this time, securing 6 seats, which is considered a significant crisis. Another Peronist satellite alliance secured an additional 2 seats. In Chaco, the left-wing alliance did not participate. The Workers' Party (PO), a FIT-U member, participated without other alliance partners, gaining 1.78% of the vote but failing to secure a seat.
In Salta, Governor Gustavo Sáenz's center-right regionalist Peronist ruling coalition won. Here, the left vote was fractured due to the Socialist Workers' Movement (MST) breaking away from the Workers' Left Front, resulting in no alliance surpassing the 5% threshold. Once again, the largest number of voters opted for abstention.
In the western province of San Luis, the center-right ruling party also won, with Peronism coming in second, and two libertarian parties trailing far behind in third and fourth place. Voter turnout was low, Peronism lost significant support compared to previous elections, and the left secured only 1.2% of the vote.
Buenos Aires Capital: Apex of Voter Apathy
Official results from the capital, Buenos Aires, followed many trends observed in the May 11 elections. In a historically politicized city with a strong democratic tradition, nearly half of the voters (approximately 47%) did not participate. This marks the lowest voter turnout in the city's history since the return to democracy in 1983. Even in a highly agitated and polarized atmosphere, voters were not persuaded to cast a ballot for any of the 17 candidates. The biggest winner of Sunday's election was abstention. All political forces suffered absolute losses in votes compared to 2021 and 2023.
Another significant story in the Buenos Aires election was the collapse of Republican Proposal (PRO), the ruling coalition associated with former President Mauricio Macri. His cousin, Jorge Macri, has headed the autonomous capital since December 2023. Their alliance, which has governed the city for decades, finished third with 15.92% of the vote, their worst result in history. Most areas historically supporting Macri-led alliances since the early 21st century turned instead to Milei's La Libertad Avanza (LLA), effectively monopolizing the right-wing of the political spectrum. Former Mayor Horacio Larreta's "We're Back Buenos Aires" secured 8.08% of the vote, chipping away at some votes.
First place went to La Libertad Avanza (LLA), led by presidential spokesperson Manuel Adorni. Before their nationwide success, the party, which found its base in the capital, showed a shift in support from working-class southern districts to wealthier northern districts. When Milei first emerged mid-term during Macri's presidency, various forces were interested in taking note of this outsider. Eduardo Eurnekian, a billionaire entrepreneur and media mogul, first took note of Milei during his personal conflict with then-President Mauricio Macri. Meanwhile, Peronism extended a helping hand to Milei and his nascent party in a cynical electoral calculation, similar to Hillary Clinton's 2016 "pied-piper" strategy that led to Donald Trump's presidency, to split the right-wing vote and alienate the center. Simultaneously, Mauricio Macri and Minister Patricia Bullrich's inner circle believed they could use Milei to shift political discourse to the right. They hoped Milei's often rough and unorthodox style and lack of extensive party organization would move the Overton window to the right without him securing a significant share of the vote. A look at Sunday's electoral map by district reveals how much each strategy materialized.
Second place went to the Peronist alliance "Now Is The Time Buenos Aires," led by the moderate Leandro Santoro. Santoro had asked opposition voters to vote for him in 2023 to defeat Macri but withdrew before the runoff. Peronism secured 27.35% of the vote this time, compared to 32% in 2023.
The only other alliance to secure seats in this election was the Workers' Left Front-Unity (FIT-U), which was the only alliance not supported by any current or former national, provincial, or municipal government. Despite these disadvantages, FIT-U's success in securing legislative seats is noteworthy.
Some candidates who failed to cross the 3% vote threshold accounted for 73% of streaming broadcast time a month before the election. In addition to economic disadvantages, FIT-U had to contend with antisemitic accusations against their leading candidate, Vanina Biasi (PO), simply for expressing solidarity with the Palestinian people and condemning the ongoing genocide perpetrated by Israel. As in all other provinces, FIT-U had to run a grassroots campaign. However, it was not enough to retain the two seats gained in 2021 when Myriam Bregman (PTS) achieved a historic 8% in the area. In the coming days, internal discussions will take place regarding why voters' discontent did not turn to the militant left, the impact of the dynamics among the four parties forming FIT-U on the election results, and how to strengthen workers' organization during the latter half of Milei's term.
Of the total 30 seats, La Libertad Avanza (LLA) secured 11 (+5), Peronism 10 (+2), Macri's PRO 5 (-1), Larreta's nascent PRO faction "We're Back BA" 3, and Workers' Left Front-Unity (FIT-U) 1 (-1). All other candidates (some comprising various Peronist and Macrist satellite parties) failed to secure seats.
Key Message of the Election: Deepening Voter Apathy
The most significant political message emerging from this election, particularly pronounced in the capital, is widespread voter apathy. After Milei's ascent to power amidst discontent with the two traditional bourgeois alliances that have governed Argentina since the return to democracy, many citizens are disillusioned to see him governing in ways similar to the very politicians he previously denounced as the "corrupt caste." In a country where voting is legally mandatory, and historical average participation comfortably exceeded 70%, half of the electorate found no meaning in participating and felt revulsion towards the court politics of legislative deliberations. This is completely detached from the needs and interests of the working masses. In the capital, no force was strengthened. Even those who performed strongly (first and second place) were forced to celebrate quietly. Voter abstention was highest in the poorer southern districts, while Milei's party garnered the strongest support in the wealthier northern districts, illustrating a clear class divide in this election.
Future Election Outlook
Whether the observed trends will persist in later elections this year will be seen in Misiones (June 8), Santa Fe and Formosa (June 29), and the most populous and Peronist-stronghold province of Buenos Aires (September 7). Nationwide legislative elections, with half of the Chamber of Deputies seats and one-third of the Senate seats at stake, are scheduled for October 26.
This date is highly anticipated because the $20 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan granted to Argentina earlier this year was expected to act as a lifeline, injecting dollars into the central bank and bolstering support for the Milei government. It remains to be seen whether Milei can suppress inflationary pressures and discontent over low wages and insufficient public spending until then (or after the midterm elections). Milei's initial response has been aggressive: through decrees, he has restricted the right to strike in broad sectors of industry and services and abolished tariffs on imported technological products, directly threatening the tech industry in the southernmost province of Tierra del Fuego. Workers in that sector immediately halted production and went on strike (despite union bureaucracy), demanding job security.
These election results indicate a rapidly shifting political landscape in Argentina. Traditional parties are losing ground amidst voter apathy, and President Milei's libertarian reforms are leading to a shift in his support base. However, above all, the deepening political indifference and disillusionment among voters raise fundamental questions about the future of Argentine democracy.
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