Argentinaportal |
At the national level, Argentina elects a head of state (the President) and a legislature. The franchise extends to all citizens aged 16 and over, and voting is mandatory (with a few exceptions) for all those who are between 18 and 70 years of age.
The President and the Vice President are elected in one ballot, for a four-year term, by direct popular vote, using a runoff voting system: a second vote is held if no party wins more than 45% of the votes, or more than 40% with also at least 10 percentage points more than the runner-up. Before the 1995 election, the president and vice-president were both elected by an electoral college.
The National Congress (Congreso de la Nación) has two chambers. The Chamber of Deputies of the Nation (Cámara de Diputados de la Nación) has 257 members, elected for a four-year term in each electoral district (23 Provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires) by proportional representation using the D'Hondt method, with half of the seats renewed every two years in all districts. The Senate of the Nation (Senado de la Nación) has 72 members, elected for a six-year term in three-seat constituencies (23 provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires) for a six-year term, with two seats awarded to the largest party or coalition and one seat to the second largest party or coalition. One-third of the constituencies are renewed every two years. In 2001 the whole senate was renewed. A gender parity law, adopted in 2017, mandates that party lists must alternate between male and female candidates.
Universal, secret and compulsory voting for male Argentine citizens, either natural-born or naturalized, was guaranteed by the 1912 Sáenz Peña Law, named after President Roque Sáenz Peña. The first free elections under the Sáenz Peña regime were held in 1916. [1] Women did not have the right to vote in Argentina until 1947, when Law 13.010 ("on political rights for women") was sanctioned during the government of Juan Domingo Perón. [2] Women first voted in a national election in 1951.
Throughout the 20th century, voting was suppressed by Argentina's numerous dictatorial regimes. [3] The dictatorships of José Félix Uriburu (1930–1932) and the so-called Revolución Libertadora and Revolución Argentina , as well as the last military dictatorship (1976–1983), all suppressed voting altogether. In addition, electoral fraud was widespread under the successive governments of the so-called Infamous Decade . [4] Since the return of democracy in 1983, Argentine elections have been generally deemed as free, fair and transparent, [5] and participation levels remain high, with an average of 70.24% as of 2019. [6]
In 2012, Law 26.774 ("on Argentine Citizenship") lowered the legal voting age for Argentine citizens from 18 to 16, making Argentina one of twelve countries in the world to do so. [7]
The right to vote is mandated in Article 37 of the Constitution of Argentina, and further detailed in the National Electoral Code. [8] In the national order, entitlement to vote is based on citizenship. Natural-born Argentine citizens and citizens by descent aged 16 or older have the right to vote, while naturalized citizens may vote from the age of 18 (see Argentine nationality law). Non-citizen permanent residents do not have the right to vote for national offices, but may be allowed to vote for local office as established by provincial law. The right to vote is not extended to:
All Argentine citizens are automatically registered to vote in the national electoral roll, which is updated on a bi-yearly basis ahead of every scheduled election. [9] From the ages of 18 to 70, voting is compulsory. Eligible voters between the ages of 18 and 70 may by exempt from voting if they are:
Argentine citizens living abroad may vote in embassies and consulates of Argentina. [10]
Provincial law and constitutions, controlled by provincial legislatures regulate elections at the provincial level and local level. Since the separation of powers applies to provinces as well as the federal government, provincial legislatures and the executive (the governor) are elected separately. Governors are elected in all provinces.
All members of provincial legislatures and territorial jurisdiction legislature are elected.
As a matter of convenience and cost-saving, elections for many of these provincial and local offices are held at the same time as the federal presidential elections. There is a handful of provinces, however, that instead hold their elections separately.
Position | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Type | Open Primaries [note 1] (August) Presidential (October) National Senate (October) Chamber of Deputies (October) Provincial (March–October) Municipalities (March–October) | Municipalities (no data) | Open Primaries (August) National Senate (October) Chamber of Deputies (October) Provincial (TBA) Municipalities (TBA) | Municipalities (no data) | Open Primaries (August) Presidential (October) National Senate (October) Chamber of Deputies (October) Provincial (March–October) Municipalities (March–October) |
President and Vice-president | President and Vice-president | None | President and Vice-president | ||
National Senate | Third [note 2] | None | Third [note 3] | None | Third [note 4] |
Chamber of Deputies | Half [note 5] | None | Half | None | Half |
Provincial (Governors and Legislatures) | 22 Provinces (G) [note 6] 23 Provinces (L) [note 7] | None | 2 Provinces (G) [note 8] 13 Provinces (L) [note 9] | None | 22 Provinces (G) [note 10] 23 Provinces (L) [note 11] |
Municipalities (Mayors and Councils) | no data | no data | no data | no data | no data |
Position | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Type | Presidential (December) National Senate Chamber of Deputies Provincial Municipalities | Municipalities | National Senate Chamber of Deputies Provincial Municipalities | Municipalities | Presidential National Senate Chamber of Deputies Provincial Municipalities |
President and Vice-president | 10 December | None | 10 December | ||
National Senate | 10 December | None | 10 December | None | 10 December |
Chamber of Deputies | 10 December | None | 10 December | None | 10 December |
Provinces (Governors and Legislatures) | December | None | December | None | December |
Municipalities (Mayors and Councils) | no data | no data | no data | no data | no data |
The ruling "Union for the Homeland" coalition lost to the "La Libertad Avanza" alliance in the second round presidential elections by 55.69% vs 44.31%. [11]
Argentina is divided into twenty-three federated states called provinces and one called the autonomous city of Buenos Aires, which is the federal capital of the republic as decided by the Argentine Congress. The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions and exist under a federal system.
Victorino de la Plaza was an Argentine politician and lawyer who served as President of Argentina from 9 August 1914 to 11 October 1916.
Roque José Antonio del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Sáenz Peña Lahitte was an Argentine politician and lawyer who served as President of Argentina from 12 October 1910 to his death in office on 9 August 1914. He was the son of former president Luis Sáenz Peña. He was a candidate for an internal, modernist line within the National Autonomist Party.
Departments form the second level of administrative division, and are subdivided in municipalities. They are extended in all of Argentina except for the Province of Buenos Aires and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, the national capital, each of which has different administrative arrangements.
Argentina held national parliamentary elections on Sunday, 23 October 2005. For the purpose of these elections, each of the 23 provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires are considered electoral districts.
The current Constitution of Argentina dates from 1853. The Constitution of Argentina of 1853 was approved in 1853 by almost all of the provincial governments at that moment with the exception of Buenos Aires Province, which remained separate from the Argentine Confederation until 1859. After several modifications to the original constitution and the return of power to Buenos Aires' Unitarian Party, it was sanctioned on May 1, 1853, by the Constitutional Convention gathered in Santa Fe, and it was promulgated by the provisional director of the national executive government Justo José de Urquiza, a member of the Federalist Party. Following the short-lived constitutions of 1819 and 1826, it was the third constitution in the history of the country.
The San Nicolás Agreement was a pact signed on May 31, 1852 and subscribed by all but one of the 14 provinces of the United Provinces of the River Plate. The treaty consisted of 19 articles, and its goal was to set the bases for the national organization of the young Argentine state. It also served as precedent to the sanction of the Argentine Constitution of 1853.
The Argentine general election of 1931 was held on 8 November.
General elections were held in Argentina on 2 April 1916. Voters elected the President, legislators, and local officials. The first secret-ballot presidential elections in the nation's history, they were mandatory and had a turnout of 62.8%. The turnout for the Chamber of Deputies election was 65.9%.
The Argentine Civil Wars were a series of civil conflicts of varying intensity that took place through the territories of Argentina from 1814 to 1853. Beginning concurrently with the Argentine War of Independence (1810–1818), the conflict prevented the formation of a stable governing body until the signing of the Argentine Constitution of 1853, followed by low-frequency skirmishes that ended with the Federalization of Buenos Aires. The period saw heavy intervention from the Brazilian Empire that fought against state and provinces in multiple wars. Breakaway nations, former territories of the viceroyalty, such as the Banda Oriental, Paraguay and the Upper Peru were involved to varying degrees. Foreign powers such as the British and French empires put heavy pressure on the fledgling nations at times of international war.
Argentine legislative elections of 1912 were held on 7 April 1912 for the Argentine Chamber of Deputies. The first free, democratic elections in the nation's history, the contest had a turnout of 73%.
Most Provinces of Argentina held executive and legislative elections during 2011, electing governors and provincial legislatures. The only exceptions are Santiago del Estero Province, whose executive and legislative elections were elected in 2012; and Corrientes Province, whose gubernatorial election took place in 2013.
The Pact of San José de Flores was a treaty signed between the Argentine Confederation and the State of Buenos Aires on November 11, 1859, on the aftermath of the Battle of Cepeda. It established guidelines for the entry of the latter into the Confederation, and Buenos Aires' acceptance of the Argentine Constitution of 1853.
The Workers' Left Front – Unity is an alliance of initially three Trotskyist parties in Argentina formed to participate in elections in 2011, announced at a press conference in April that year. They were the Workers' Party (PO), the Socialist Workers' Party (PTS), and Socialist Left (IS). In 2019, the Workers' Socialist Movement (MST) joined the alliance.
Legislative elections were held in Argentina on 27 October 2013. Open primary elections (PASO) were previously held on 11 August 2013 to determine eligible party lists for the general election. As in 2011 – when such primaries were held for the first time – each party list had to reach a 1.5% threshold at the provincial level in order to proceed to the 27 October polls.
General elections were held in Argentina on 27 October 2019, to elect the president of Argentina, members of the national congress and the governors of most provinces.
Legislative elections were held in Argentina on 14 November 2021. Half of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies and a third of the seats in the Senate were renewed. The election had previously been scheduled to take place on 24 October 2021, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina.
The Chamber of Deputies of Santiago del Estero Province is the unicameral legislative body of Santiago del Estero Province, in Argentina. It comprises 40 legislators, elected in a single province-wide multi-member district through proportional representation using the D'Hondt system.
The Argentine provincial elections will elect the executive and legislative authorities of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires and in 21 of the 23 provinces of Argentina, except (executive) Corrientes and Santiago del Estero; elections in Tucumán and San Juan were suspended by the Supreme Court.
On 13 August 2023, the Simultaneous and Mandatory Open Primaries (PASO) were held in Argentina to determine candidatures for national offices in the presidential and legislative elections on 22 October 2023. It was the first election where Peronism lost and ended in third place.