The first round of the presidential elections in Argentina materialized with a great surprise: the victory of the Peronist candidate and current Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, who with 36.68% of the votes managed to defeat the great favorite, Javier Milei, with a lead of 6.7 points. Both candidates will face each other in a tight second round, on November 19.
However, the votes of Argentinians residing in Spain have had another meaning. According to data provided by party prosecutors, to which 20minutos has had access, the big winner in Spain has been Patricia Bullrich, whose party, Together for Change, obtained 41% of the votes. This result contrasts with the total for Argentina, where the center-right candidate obtained 23.83% of the ballots, which has prevented her from entering the second round.
Javier Milei does make it to the second round, whose candidacy, La Libertad Avanza, came in second place in Spain with 36.74% of the votes.. The liberal candidate had a more significant percentage of support in Spain than in the Argentine nation as a whole, where he obtained 29.98% of the ballots.
The great winner of the night was, at the same time, the great loser in the Argentine vote in Spain. Sergio Massa only obtained 22.25% of votes in Spanish territory, compared to the resounding 36.68% overall that gave him victory in the first round of the presidential elections.
The vote of Together for Change is the great unknown in the Argentine political panorama, which could tip the balance on one side or the other. In the case of Argentines residing in Spain, the right has added a resounding 77.74% of the votes, which could unite on November 19 in Milei's candidacy.
The elections of last October 22 have stood out for the high participation of Argentines residing in Spanish territory. According to official sources, in large Spanish cities more than 10% of the census has participated, a historical record.
The vote took place last Sunday in the six consulates that the Argentine Republic has in our country: in the cities of Madrid, Barcelona, Cádiz, Vigo, Mallorca and Tenerife. In almost all the consulates the same trend could be observed: in Barcelona, for example, Bullrich obtained 35% of the votes, compared to 33% for Milei and 24.5% for Massa. In Madrid, Together for Change won 41% of the ballots, La Libertad Avanza 31% and Unión por la Patria 18%.
Milei's result in the islands was surprising, where he obtained a comfortable victory. In Tenerife, the liberal obtained 53% of the votes, and in Mallorca 45%.
The same consulates will serve as electoral colleges again on November 19, when Argentines will choose, between Massa and Milei, who will be their next president.