2005 Argentine legislative election

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.

2005 Argentine legislative election
Argentina
← 200323 October 20052007 →

127 of 257 seats in the Chamber of Deputies
24 of 72 seats in the Senate
Turnout73.33% (Deputies)
76.41% (Senate)
Party%Seats+/–
Chamber of Deputies
Front for Victory

39.46%63−5
Radical Civic Union

10.17%14−3
Federal Peronism

8.09%12+11
Support for an Egalitarian Republic

8.00%9−1
Republican Proposal Alliance

7.44%10+6
Socialist Party - Radical Civic Union

5.18%70
Federalist Unity Party

2.29%2−1
New Front

2.02%30
Front of Everyone (Corrientes)

1.63%30
Salta Renewal Party

0.58%10
Neuquén People's Movement

0.50%20
Civic Front for Victory

0.36%10
Senate
Front for Victory

47.70%16+3
Federal Peronism

17.44%5+5
Radical Civic Union

8.13%3−3
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.

Each district elected a number of members of the Lower House (the Argentine Chamber of Deputies) roughly proportional to their population. Eight districts (Buenos Aires, Formosa, Jujuy, La Rioja, Misiones, San Juan, San Luis, and Santa Cruz) also elected members to the Upper House of Congress (the Argentine Senate); as usual, three senators were elected (two for the majority, one for the first minority).

In most provinces, the national elections were conducted in parallel with local ones, whereby a number of municipalities elected legislative officials (concejales) and in some cases also a mayor (or the equivalent executive post). Each provincial election followed local regulations.

A number of districts had held primary elections beforehand. In most cases, primary elections are optional and can be called for by the local political parties as needed; in Santa Fe, however, the primaries were universal and compulsory due to a recent law that repealed the much-criticized Ley de Lemas.

Background

edit

The main parties and coalitions competing in these elections were:

In some districts, different factions of the Justicialist Party (PJ) presented candidates separately. In Buenos Aires Province and the city of Buenos Aires, the main intra-party division of the PJ was between the center-right, traditional Peronist faction led by Hilda González de Duhalde (wife of former governor and interim president Eduardo Duhalde), and the more center-left "heterodox" faction with candidates that answer to President Néstor Kirchner. These included his own wife, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, and Minister of Foreign Relations, Rafael Bielsa. In the Province of Buenos Aires, this split was protested by other parties, on the grounds that the PJ (taken as a whole) would most likely win the three senatorial benches available (as it finally occurred).

Kirchner took a prominent role in the campaign for "his" candidates of the Front for Victory (Frente para la Victoria, FV) in most provinces, explicitly stating that these elections were a referendum on his administration. Kirchner also campaigned against former President Carlos Menem, a leading conservative Peronist, in La Rioja Province, where the latter was ultimately elected to the Senate for the third (minority party) seat. The opening and closing campaign meetings of the FV were both held in Rosario, a typically progressive city that, since 1987, had been governed successfully by a Socialist local government. This party changed the traditional electoral paradigm in the Province of Santa Fe, largely displacing Peronism and the UCR in that district.

Results

edit
President Néstor Kirchner (left) confers with Buenos Aires Province Governor Felipe Solá. Their opposition to powerbroker Eduardo Duhalde dominated the 2005 races.

Buoyed by a strong recovery in the Argentine economy, candidates endorsed by Kirchner (mainly on the Front for Victory ticket) obtained an overwhelming triumph. Of the 127 deputies elected, the FV won 69 seats (54%); the UCR only got 19. The rest of the Justicialist Party obtained 11 seats; Recrear got 9, the ARI got 8, and the Socialist Party got 5. Only the three most voted in this list have an established national structure; Recrear and the ARI are relatively recent offshoots of the UCR (to the right- and left-wing side of the political spectrum, respectively), and the Socialist Party's five deputies all belong to the province of Santa Fe, the only district where the PS is strong.

As explained above, eight provinces were also scheduled to renew their senators (the Senate is renewed by thirds every two years). The Front for Victory won 17 of the 24 senatorial seats. The other factions of Peronism got 4 senators. The UCR got the remaining 3 seats. Among the remarkable results were the victory of First Lady Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in Buenos Aires, the largest in the country, beating former First Lady Hilda González de Duhalde by about 25% of the votes; and the defeat of Carlos Menem in his home district, La Rioja (though he won the first minority seat).

Chamber of Deputies

edit
PartyVotes%Seats wonTotal seats
Front for Victory (FPV)6,806,89139.4663113
Radical Civic Union (UCR)1,753,57610.171439
Federal Peronism1,395,0148.091238
Support for an Egalitarian Republic (ARI)1,380,3308.00919
Republican Proposal Alliance (PRO)1,282,5037.441014
Socialist Party (PS) - Radical Civic Union (UCR)893,1155.187[a]
Federalist Unity Party (PAUFE)395,1022.2925
United Left (IU)366,2592.12
New Front349,1122.0236
Front of Everyone (Corrientes) (PJ + UCR)281,0771.633[b]
Humanist Party (PH)233,8891.36
Workers' Party (PO)224,8681.30
Socialist Party (PS)144,7340.847
Neighborhood Confederation134,5310.78
Salta Renewal Party (PRS)100,6860.5812
Neuquén People's Movement (MPN)86,6100.5024
Movement for Socialism (MAS) - Socialist Workers' Party (PTS)78,3200.45
Self-determination and Freedom (AyL)63,3200.372
Civic Front for Victory (PJ + UCR)62,2620.361[c]
Front for Justice and Social Progress61,8030.36
Authentic Socialist Party (PSA)60,9920.35
United for Corrientes Front60,6420.351
People's Reconstruction Party (PPR)54,4300.32
United People's Front50,3020.29
Democratic Progressive Party (PDP)48,7310.28
People First - Neighborhood Union of Córdoba46,2770.27
Republican Force (FR)40,9820.242
Anticorruption Front40,9220.24
Union for Everyone40,6300.24
Everyone - Political Movement for the Defense of Civil and Social Rights36,5360.21
Christian Democratic Party (PDC)34,2340.20
Center Federal Movement33,7130.20
Integration and Development Movement (MID)32,0300.19
Popular Union30,4050.18
Intransigent Party (PI)28,5280.17
Open Policy for Social Integrity (PAIS)28,4050.16
Chubut Action Party (PACH)26,7730.16
Popular Action Movement26,0020.15
Unity and Liberty Party (PUL)24,2240.14
Corrientes Project23,9070.141
Socialist Convergence22,0950.13
Provincial Neighborhood Movement20,7370.12
Blocist Unity19,8660.12
Movement for Dignity and Independence (MODIN)19,4480.11
Independent Movement of Retirees and Unemployed (MIJD)19,0250.11
Popular Loyalty16,8970.10
Federal Democratic Alliance13,9910.08
Front Party13,9440.08
Authentic Popular Front11,5420.074
Front for the New Majority11,0690.06
Freedom and Responsible Democracy10,9790.06
Río Negro Provincial Party (PPR)10,6750.06
Fueguian People's Movement (MOPOF)9,4470.05
Porteña Hope9,2690.05
Santiado del Estero Crusade9,2240.05
Constitutional Nationalist Party (PNC)8,7510.05
Party for Independent Solidarity Action in Buenos Aires8,7420.05
Network for Buenos Aires8,5480.05
Citizen Dignity7,3670.04
Popular Sovereignty Front7,0690.04
Together for Mendoza6,9540.04
San Luis Front of Victory6,8180.04
Front of Self-Convened Political Groups6,6560.04
Service and Community6,4790.04
Independent Citizens6,2180.04
Front Unity for Change5,8100.03
Retirees in Action5,7000.03
Salta Popular Movement5,1530.03
Popular Unity Movement4,9500.03
May 25 Party4,5080.03
Republican Union3,8950.02
Popular Unity3,7270.02
Citizen Action3,3860.02
People's Assemblies Party3,3610.02
New Generation3,3610.02
Autonomist Party3,3440.02
Emancipatory Front3,1400.02
Popular Participation Party3,1070.02
Public Call2,8850.02
Free in Motion2,7000.02
New Leadership2,4890.01
Open Space2,1930.01
Fuegian Federal Party1,9930.01
United Neighbors1,9490.01
Provincial Defense - White Flag1,5690.01
Third Millennium1,5420.01
Independent Party of Chubut1,3920.01
Independence Party1,3860.01
Transformative Action1,3820.01
Middle Generation Party1,3590.01
Autonomous Power1,2610.01
Provincial Action9750.01
Conservative People's Party (PCP)8770.01
New Party of Buenos Aires7920.00
Federal Renewal Party5970.00
Citizen Integration Call5570.00
Total17,248,192100127257
Positive votes17,248,19289.98
Blank votes1,466,3677.65
Invalid votes454,0072.37
Total votes19,168,566100
Registered voters/turnout26,140,76673.33

Senate

edit
PartyVotes%Seats wonTotal seats
Front for Victory (FPV)3,938,76647.701641
Federal Peronism1,611,21417.4455
Radical Civic Union (UCR)751,1128.13318
Support for an Egalitarian Republic (ARI)575,2636.23
Republican Proposal Alliance (PRO)509,7565.52
United Left (IU)188,7822.04
Neighborhood Confederation137,6341.49
Humanist Party (PH)116,3141.26
Workers' Party (PO)108,4201.17
Movement for Socialism (MAS) - Socialist Workers' Party (PTS)42,6190.46
Socialist Party (PS)38,4680.421
Popular Action Movement29,7850.32
People's Reconstruction Party (PPR)27,8200.30
Blocist Unity22,2430.24
Socialist Convergence21,8600.24
Popular Front20,4180.22
Independent Movement of Retirees and Unemployed (MIJD)18,5950.20
Integration and Development Movement (MID)14,1960.15
Front for the New Majority12,5870.14
Authentic Popular Front11,4450.12
Freedom and Responsible Democracy10,8540.12
Party for Independent Solidarity Action in Buenos Aires8,7430.09
Citizen Dignity8,6370.09
San Luis Front of Victory7,2760.08
Unity for Change Front5,8770.06
May 25 Party4,9320.05
Popular Unity3,1910.03
Free in Motion2,7060.03
New Leadership2,4670.03
New Generation2,3620.03
Unity and Liberty Party (PUL)1,9240.02
Movement for Dignity and Independence (MODIN)6660.01
Neuquén People's Movement (MPN)did not run2
Republican Force (FR)did not run2
Salta Renewal Party (PRS)did not run1
New Party (PANU)did not run1
New Frontdid not run1
Total8,256,9321002472
Positive votes8,256,93289.40
Blank votes828,9448.98
Invalid votes150,1891.63
Total votes9,236,065100
Registered voters/turnout12,088,12276.41

Notes

edit

References

edit