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 Argentinaportal |
The government of Argentina, within the framework of a federal system, is a presidential representative democratic republic. The President of Argentina is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the President. Legislative power is vested in the National Congress. The Judiciary is independent from the Executive and from the Legislature, and is vested in the Supreme Court and the lower national tribunals.
The current composition of the executive branch includes solely the President, the head of state, formally given the power over the Administration to follow through with the interests of the Nation. The President is also the Chief of the Argentine Armed Forces.
The President and the Vice President are elected through universal suffrage by the nation considered as a whole. The Constitutional reform of 1994 introduced a two-round system by which the winning President-Vice President ticket has to receive either more than 45% of the overall valid votes, or at least 40% of it and a 10% lead over the runner-up. In any other case, the two leading tickets get to face a second round whose victor will be decided by a simple majority. This mechanism was not necessary in the 1995 election, when it could have first come into use, nor in the 1999 election, nor in two of the more recent presidential elections, which occurred in 2007 and 2011. However, it was instrumental in the selection of Néstor Kirchner in 2003.
The cabinet of ministers is appointed by the president, but is not technically part of the executive power. [1] The Vice President belongs to the legislative branch, since the position also holds the presidency of the Senate.
As of February 2024:
| Portfolio | Incumbent | Since | Party | Coalition | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers |  | Nicolás Posse | 10 December 2023 | Independent | La Libertad Avanza | ||
| Ministry of the Interior |  | Guillermo Francos | 10 December 2023 | Independent | La Libertad Avanza | ||
| Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship |  | Diana Mondino | 10 December 2023 | Independent | La Libertad Avanza | ||
| Ministry of Defense |  | Luis Petri | 10 December 2023 | Radical Civic Union | Juntos por el Cambio | ||
| Ministry of Economy |  | Luis Caputo | 10 December 2023 | Republican Proposal | Juntos por el Cambio | ||
| Ministry of Justice |  | Mariano Cúneo Libarona | 10 December 2023 | Independent | |||
| Ministry of Security |  | Patricia Bullrich | 10 December 2023 | Republican Proposal | Juntos por el Cambio | ||
| Ministry of Health |  | Mario Russo | 10 December 2023 | Independent | |||
| Ministry of Human Capital |  | Sandra Pettovello | 10 December 2023 | Union of the Democratic Centre | La Libertad Avanza | ||
The National Congress (Spanish : Congreso Nacional) constitutes the legislative branch of government. The Congress consists of the Senate (72 seats), presided by the Vice-President of the Nation, and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats), currently presided by Julián Domínguez, deputy for Buenos Aires province. Senators stay in office for six years, and deputies, for four.
Each of the Provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires elect deputies and senators directly. Deputies are representatives of the whole people of the Nation, while Senators represent their districts. Each district elects a number of deputies roughly proportional to their overall population by proportional representation, and three senators: two for the majority, and one for the first minority. Members of both chambers are allowed indefinite re-elections.
Every two years, each of the 24 electoral districts (the twenty-three Provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires) elects one half of their lower chamber representatives. Districts with an odd number of Deputies elect one more or one fewer of them on each election. As for the Senators, the twenty-four districts are divided into three groups consisting of eight districts. Every two years all eight districts of one of those groups elect all their three senators, assigning two of them from the party that obtains the majority, and one from the first minority party. Six years later, the same group of districts will hold its next senatorial elections.
 | Parts of this article (those related to current composition of Argentine Congress) need to be updated.(December 2011) |
Following the 9/11 mid-term elections, half the Chamber of Deputies seats and one third of the seats in the Senate were subjected to the ballot box. The Front for Victory (FPV) and other allies of Néstor and Cristina Kirchner, Argentina's progressive ruling couple, secured 113 of 257 seats in the lower house, losing 24 seats and their previous absolute majority (the fractious Justicialist Party , to which the FPV formally adheres, continue to enjoy the control of the lower house since 1989[ citation needed ]). Among Justicialists representatives, a further 17 seats went to anti-Kirchnerites (mostly conservatives), gaining just one seat from the previous situation. The centrist social democratic Radical Civic Union , Argentina's oldest party, allied itself in various districts with the centrist Civic Coalition or with the social democratic Socialist Party , secured 77 seats, thus gaining 16. The conservative Republican Proposal secured 26 seats, gaining 12 from the previous election. A further 24 seats went to smaller parties, mostly provincially oriented, but also from the center-left spectrum. [2]
Something similar took place in the Senate, where the Kirchners' Front for Victory secured 36 of 72 seats (losing 4), the UCR/CC/PS grouping secured 23 (gaining 7), and the Justicialist Party wing opposed to the Kirchners maintained their presence of 9 seats. Smaller, provincial parties were left with 4 seats in all (losing 3); Justicialists (pro or against the current Administration) maintained the control over the Senate they've enjoyed since 1983. [2]
Riding a wave of approval during a dramatic economic recovery from a 2001-02 crisis, the Kirchners' FPV enjoyed increasingly large majorities in Congress, reaching a peak at the 2007 general elections (153 Congressmen and 44 Senators). However, soon after, on July 16, 2008, a presidentially sponsored bill to increase Argentina's export taxes on the basis of a sliding scale met with a legislative deadlock, and was ultimately defeated by the tie-breaking "against" vote of Vice President Julio Cobos. That controversial law cost the FPV 16 Congressmen and 4 Senators by way of defections. [3]
In 2009 elections, FPV candidates lost in the four most important electoral districts (home to 60% of Argentines), only in the Province of Buenos Aires by a narrow difference. Considering the overall national vote, FPV obtained only a very narrow victory, becoming the Congress first minority from December 10, 2009, onward. [4] This will be reflected in strengthened opposition alliances, notably the center-right Unión Pro, the center-left Civic Coalition and the left-wing Proyecto Sur, when elected candidates in both chambers take office on December 11, 2009.
The Judiciary Branch is composed of federal judges and others with different jurisdictions and of a Supreme Court with nine members (one President, one Vice President, and seven Ministers), appointed by the President with approval of the Senate, who may be deposed by Congress. As of December 2015 there are six vacancies, which then President Kirchner stated she did not intend to fill.
Argentina is divided into 23 districts called Provinces and one autonomous district, which hosts the national capital, the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (which is conurbated into the province of Buenos Aires). Each of the provinces has its own constitution, laws, authorities, form of government, etc., though these must first and foremost comply with the national constitution and laws.
The government of each province has three branches. The Executive, Legislative and Judiciary. The Executive branch is led by a governor. The Legislative Branch may be organized as a unicameral or a bicameral system (that is, either one or two chambers or houses).
Each province, except for Buenos Aires Province, is divided into districts called departments (departamentos). Departaments are merely administrative divisions; they do not have governing structures or authorities of their own. They are in turn divided into municipalities (cities, towns and villages). Each province has its own naming conventions and government systems for different kinds of municipalities. For example, Córdoba Province has municipios (cities) and comunas (towns); Santa Fe Province further distinguishes between first- and second- tier municipios; Chaco Province refers to every populated center as municipios, in three categories.
The Province of Buenos Aires has a different system. Its territory is divided into 134 districts called partidos , each of which usually contains several cities and towns.
Regardless of the province, each department/partido has a head town (cabecera), often though not necessarily the largest urban center, and in some provinces often named the same as their parent district.
Municipalities are ruled by mayors, usually called Intendant (intendente) in the case of cities and towns (the larger categories). A city has a legislative body called the Deliberative Council (Concejo Deliberante). The smaller towns have simpler systems, often ruled by commissions presided by a communal president (presidente communal) or a similarly named authority.
Buenos Aires city, seat of the National Government, was declared an autonomous city by the 1994 constitutional reform. Its mayor, formerly chosen by the President of the Republic, is now elected by the people, and receives the title of Chief of Government (Jefe de Gobierno). Other than that, Buenos Aires, as the provinces, has its own Legislative Branch (a unicameral Legislature) and elect deputies and senators as representatives to the National Congress.
The politics of Argentina take place in the framework of what the Constitution defines as a federal presidential representative democratic republic, where the President of Argentina is both Head of State and Head of Government. Legislative power is vested in the two chambers of the Argentine National Congress. The Judiciary is independent, as are the Executive and the Legislature. Elections take place regularly on a multi-party system.
The Federalist Union Party, initially named Party of Buenos Aires Unity, is a right-wing political party active in various provinces of Argentina. Its most visible leader is the former police chief, Luis Patti, former Mayor of Escobar, who is accused of torturing people during the last dictatorship.
The Salta Renewal Party is a conservative provincial political party in Salta Province, Argentina.
Argentina held a presidential election on Sunday, 27 April 2003. Turnout was 78.2%. No one presidential candidate gained enough votes to win outright, but the scheduled runoff was cancelled when former president and first-round winner Carlos Menem pulled out just 4 days before the planned runoff on 18 May, handing the presidency to runner-up, Santa Cruz Province Governor Néstor Kirchner of the Front for Victory. Legislative elections were held on 12 dates, 27 April, 24 August, 31 August, 7 September, 14 September, 28 September, 5 October, 19 October, 26 October, 9 November, 16 November and 23 November. As of 2023, this marked the last time that both the president-elect and vice president-elect ticket were both men.
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.
María Laura Leguizamón is an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. She was a National Senator for Buenos Aires Province from 2011 to 2017 and for the City of Buenos Aires from 2003 to 2007. She also served in the Argentine Chamber of Deputies and in the Buenos Aires City Legislature.
Jorge Enrique Taiana is an Argentine Justicialist Party politician who served as the country's Minister of Defense from 2021 to 2023. Taiana previously served as Foreign Minister in the administrations of President Néstor Kirchner and his successor, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, from 2005 to 2010, and as a National Senator for Buenos Aires from 2019 to 2021.
Argentina held national presidential and legislative elections on Sunday, 28 October 2007, and elections for provincial governors took place on staggered dates throughout the year. For the national elections, each of the 23 provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires are considered electoral districts. Voter turnout was 76.2%. Buenos Aires Province Senator and First Lady Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of the Front for Victory won the election by 45.28% of votes against Elisa Carrió of Civic Coalition ARI, making her the second female president of Argentina and the first female president to be directly elected. She broke the 40 percent barrier and won in the first round. Elisa Carrió won in the city of Buenos Aires and came second with more than 20 percent of the votes. Third was Roberto Lavagna, who won in Córdoba.
The Argentine general election of 1995 was held on 14 May. Voters chose both the President and their legislators and with a turnout of 82.1%.
Selva Judit Forstmann was an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. She sat in the Argentine Senate representing Santa Cruz Province in the majority block of the Front for Victory.
Legislative elections were held in Argentina for half the seats in the Chamber of Deputies and a third (24) of the seats in the Senate on 28 June 2009, as well as for the legislature of the City of Buenos Aires and other municipalities.
General elections were held in Argentina on Sunday, 23 October 2011. Incumbent president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of the Front for Victory won in a landslide, with 54.11% of the vote, securing a second term in office. The Front for Victory won just over half of the seats in the National Congress.
Federal Peronism, also known as Dissident Peronism, is the faction or branch of either moderate, centrist or right-wing Peronism, that is currently identified mostly by its opposition to Kirchnerism, the left-wing faction of Peronism.
Máximo Carlos Kirchner is an Argentine politician who has served as a National Deputy since 2015. He is the son of two former presidents of Argentina, Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. A member of the Justicialist Party, he is the co-founder of La Cámpora, a political youth organisation which supported the presidencies of his parents.
Legislative elections were held in Argentina on 22 October 2017 to elect half of the Chamber of Deputies and one third of the Senate. The result was a victory for the ruling Cambiemos alliance, being the most voted force in 13 of the 24 districts.
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.
Juliana Di Tullio is an Argentine psychologist and politician. A member of the Justicialist Party, Di Tullio served three terms as National Deputy representing Buenos Aires Province, from 2005 to 2017. From 2013 to 2015, during the presidency of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Di Tullio was president of the Front for Victory parliamentary bloc in the lower chamber of the National Congress. She also served as a member of the Mercosur Parliament, and in the board of directors of the Banco Provincia. Since 2021, she has been a National Senator for Buenos Aires Province.
Dalmacio Enrique Mera Figueroa is an Argentine lawyer and politician. Among other posts, he served as a National Senator for Catamarca Province from 2015 to 2021, as a National Deputy from 2009 to 2011, and as Vice Governor of Catamarca under Lucía Corpacci from 2011 to 2015. Mera belongs to the Justicialist Party.
Graciela María Giannettasio de Saiegh was an Argentine politician belonging to the Justicialist Party. She served in a number of high-profile posts during her career, most notably as Minister of Education during the interim presidency of Eduardo Duhalde from 2002 to 2003, and later as Vice Governor of Buenos Aires Province under Felipe Solá from 2003 to 2007.
