Argentina has 23 provinces (Spanish: provincias, singular provincia) and one autonomous city, Buenos Aires, which serves as the federal capital, as determined by Congress.[1]
During the War of Independence, cities and their surrounding areas became provinces through local councils (cabildos). This process was finalized during the Anarchy of the Year XX, forming the first 13 provinces.
Jujuy seceded from Salta in 1834, and the thirteen provinces became fourteen. After seceding for a decade, Buenos Aires Province accepted the 1853 Constitution of Argentina in 1861, and its capital city was made a federal territory in 1880.[2]
Provinces hold all the power that they chose not to delegate to the federal government;[4] they must be representative commonwealths and must not contradict the Constitution.[5] Beyond this, they are fully autonomous: they enact their own constitutions,[6] freely organize their local governments,[7] and own and manage their natural and financial resources.[8] Thus, each province has its own set of provincial laws and justice system, a supreme court, a governor, an autonomous police force, and a congress; in eight provinces, the legislature is bicameral, comprising an upper chamber (the Senate) and a lower chamber (the House of Deputies), while in the remaining fifteen provinces and in Buenos Aires City, it is unicameral.[9][A]
In case of sedition, insurrection, territorial invasion, or any other emerging threats against the laws of the nation on any province or the federal capital, the Congress has the authority to declare a federal intervention on the compromised district,[11] even in the absence of a formal request by the affected part.[12] When Congress is in recess and thus unable to intervene, the President is entitled to decree such intervention, but this executive order is subject to Congressional override upon the Houses' immediate reassembly.[13] Once the intervention is declared the compromised district's government is immediately dissolved—in whole or in part depending on Congressional decision—and the President appoints a representative or intervenor, who will serve for a short time until the emergency is solved. Since 1983 four provinces were intervened, namely Catamarca, Corrientes (twice), Santiago del Estero (twice), and Tucumán.[14]
During the 20th century, some provinces have had governments that were traditionally controlled by a single family (i.e. the Saadi family in Catamarca, or the Sapag family in Neuquén); in one case, it is still the same situation as of 2009: the province of San Luis was ruled almost without a break by the Rodríguez Saá family since December 1983.[15]
Article 61 of the Constitution of the city of Buenos Aires states that "Suffrage is free, equal, secret, universal, compulsory and not accumulative. The foreign residents enjoy this right, with the correlative obligations, on equal terms with Argentine citizens registered in this district, in the terms established by the law."[16]
↑ The City of Buenos Aires is an autonomous city, but its local organization has similarities with the provinces: it has its own constitution, an elected mayor, a congress, and representatives to the Senate and Deputy chambers.[10]
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