Buenos Aires, Argentina – A string of high-level scandals, coupled with a stalling economy and eroding approval ratings, are threatening President Javier Milei’s hopes for Argentina’s midterm elections.
On October 26, Argentina will head to the polls to elect half of its Chamber of Deputies and a third of its upper house, the Senate.
Currently, both chambers are controlled by the left-wing and centrist opposition to Milei’s far-right party, La Libertad Avanza.
But the midterms offer a critical opportunity for Milei’s allies to gain ground in Congress.
“The government is looking to get a third of Congress to build a ‘legislative shield,'” said Andres Malamud, a senior research fellow at the University of Lisbon’s Institute of Social Sciences.
That number of seats, Malamud explained, will prevent the opposition from forming a supermajority to override Milei’s vetoes.
It would also allow for Milei “to govern without a majority, for his decrees not to be challenged, and protect him from a potential impeachment in the future”.
Experts say the midterms will serve as a de facto referendum on the first half of Milei’s four-year term, which has seen Argentina’s sky-high inflation stabilise at the expense of public spending.
But success for Milei is far from guaranteed. According to Malamud, voters have yet to see the economic recovery Milei promised in his 2023 bid for the presidency.
“So far, he has been able to govern thanks to the public’s support, from people who were struggling but believed he could change things — that the future was going to be better,” Malamud said.
“But the challenge now is that things are not better, so the question is whether those who supported him before will go and vote for his candidates.”