Tight Race in Argentina‘s Congressionalโค Count: Milei’s party Nears Lousteau‘s Seat
BUENOS AIRES – A fiercely โคcontested race for a seat inโฃ Argentina’s Chamber of โฃDeputies hangs in the โbalance as the final vote count continues, โwith La Libertad Avanza (LLA) closingโ in on currentโ deputy Martรญn Lousteau of Ciudadanos Unidos.โฃ The dispute centers โขon a mere 1,411 vote difference separating the first quotient โof Ciudadanos Unidos (97,794 votes) and the eighth of LLA (96,383).
The outcome will have significant consequences: a LLA victory would leave Ciudadanos Unidos without any depiction in โCongress, having also failed to secure aโข Senate seat. Meanwhile,United Provinces is projected to gain onlyโ sevenโ deputies nationwide.
the tension is palpable, โwith both sides โคcloselyโฃ monitoring the ongoing scrutiny. LLA is banking on strong support from Argentines living abroad toโ overcome theโ current deficit.โข Iรฑaki โฃGutiรฉrrez,โข a libertarian commentator,โข highlighted the stakes on social media, stating, “Martรญnโ Lousteau is very few votes away from being left out of Congress โand that one more representative of President Milei will enter.โฃ All of Argentina wants the one who โraised his hand โto collect $12,000,000 to โขstay out,” – a reference to โฃa recent Senate vote to increase per diems.
To overturnโฃ the currentโ results, the finalโฃ scrutiny wouldโ need to reveal at least 1,411 votes incorrectly attributed to Lousteau. Alternatively, โคLLA would need to considerably increase it’sโ vote total. Because โคthe contested votes relate to the eighth โcandidate on the LLA list, the party wouldโข needโข to add approximately 11,288 votes to its current tally to surpassโ Lousteau.
As โof โขthisโ morning, the final countโฃ from seven ofโค the 15โ communes included โvotes from โpeople deprived ofโ their โขliberty andโค Argentines abroad. LLA claims โคto have receivedโ 6,531 โvotes from abroad, giving them a 228-vote leadโค over Lousteau after applying the necessary multiplication factor.
However, radicalism, Lousteau’s political space, remains confident โคin maintaining the current โขlead.Sources close to โthe national senator told โข THE NATION that “There is no โคchance that Lousteau will lose the bench,” citing meticulous monitoring ofโค election minutes onโข Sunday.
A UCR representative โinvolved in โthe recount declined to comment on the specific seat in dispute until the process is complete, anticipating a conclusion by noon tomorrow.
Thisโ close contestโ underscores the โคdeeplyโ polarizedโข political landscape in Argentina following the election of President Javier Milei โand highlights โคthe importance of every single vote in shaping the โขcomposition of the nation’s legislature.