Javier Milei Elected Argentina's President

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The Facts

  • Self-styled anarcho-capitalist Javier Milei has been elected president of Argentina after he defeated Economy Minister Sergio Massa of the ruling Peronist coalition on Sunday in a significant shift for the country battling a crippling economic crisis.

  • With 99.4% of the ballots tallied in the presidential runoff, Milei secured 55.7% against Massa's 44.3% — a margin wider than pre-election polls predictions and the widest since Argentina's return to democracy in 1983.

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The Spin

Left narrative

Argentines have chosen to take a risky leap in the dark as they desperately seek to resolve the country's worst economic crisis in decades. There's a significant risk that Argentina and its democratic institutions will collapse under Milei's leadership, especially if the erratic populist makes good on his promise to radically try to transform the economy.

Guardian

Right narrative

Argentina used to be one of the wealthiest nations in the world, but Peronism has destroyed the economy and badly damaged its democratic institutions over the past eight decades. Milei's victory represents the ultimate defeat of a corrupt system, as the nation wants real change and for the country to return to a path of normality.

National Review

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