Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
held national parliamentary elections on Sunday, 23 October 2005. For the purpose of these elections, each of the 23
provinces
A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
and the Autonomous City of
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
are considered electoral districts.
Each district elected a number of members of the Lower House (the
Argentine Chamber of Deputies
The Chamber of Deputies (), officially the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation, is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress (). It is made up of 257 national deputies who are elected in multi-member constituencies c ...
) roughly proportional to their population. Eight districts (
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
,
Formosa,
Jujuy,
La Rioja
La Rioja () is an autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community and provinces of Spain, province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other List of municipalities in La Rioja, cities and towns in the ...
,
Misiones,
San Juan,
San Luis, and
Santa Cruz) also elected members to the Upper House of Congress (the
Argentine Senate
The Honorable Senate of the Argentine Nation () is the upper house of the National Congress of Argentina.
Overview
The National Senate was established by the Argentine Confederation on July 29, 1854, pursuant to Articles 46 to 54 of the 185 ...
); 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
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
elected legislative officials (''concejales'') and in some cases also a
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
(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
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
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
The main parties and coalitions competing in these elections were:
* President Kirchner's faction of Peronism, called ''Frente para la Victoria'' (FV, "
Front for Victory") and its allies.
* Other factions of Peronism, under the usual name ''Partido Justicialista'' (PJ, "
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei.
Fo ...
"), often led by their respective provincial party leaders (notably
Eduardo Duhalde
Eduardo Alberto Duhalde (; born 5 October 1941) is an Argentina, Argentine former peronist politician who served as the interim President of Argentina from January 2002 to May 2003. He also served as Vice President of Argentina, Vice President ...
in Buenos Aires Province).
* ''Unión Cívica Radical'' (UCR, "
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union (, UCR) is a major political party in Argentina. It has reached the national government on ten occasions, making it one of the most historically important parties in the country. Ideologically, the party has stood for r ...
").
* ''Afirmación Para Una República Igualitaria'' (ARI, "
Support for an Egalitarian Republic"), led by
Elisa Carrió
Elisa María Avelina "Lilita" Carrió (born 26 December 1956) is an Argentine lawyer, professor, and politician. She is the leader of Civic Coalition ARI, one of the founders of Cambiemos, and was Argentine Chamber of Deputies, National Deputy f ...
.
* ''Recrear para el Crecimiento'' (
Recreate for Growth, usually shortened to ''Recrear'') and its allies within the ''Propuesta Republicana'' (
Republican Proposal
Republican Proposal (), usually referred to by its abbreviation PRO, is a political party in Argentina. PRO was formed as an electoral alliance in 2005, but was transformed into a national party in 2010. It is the major component of the Juntos ...
, PRO) front.
* ''Partido Socialista'' (PS,
Socialist Party).
In some districts, different factions of the
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei.
Fo ...
(PJ) presented candidates separately. In
Buenos Aires Province
Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...
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
Eduardo Alberto Duhalde (; born 5 October 1941) is an Argentina, Argentine former peronist politician who served as the interim President of Argentina from January 2002 to May 2003. He also served as Vice President of Argentina, Vice President ...
), and the more center-left "heterodox" faction with candidates that answer to President
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner Ostoić (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the president of Argentina from 2003 to 2007. A member of the Justicialist Party, he previously served as Governor of Sa ...
. These included his own wife,
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and former politician who served as the 56th president of Argentina from 2007 to 2015, and later as the 37th Vice ...
, 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
A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...
on his administration. Kirchner also campaigned against former President
Carlos Menem
Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...
, 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
Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city, located northwest of Buenos Aires on the west bank of the Paraná River, is the third-most populous city in the ...
, a typically progressive city that, since 1987, had been governed successfully by a
Socialist
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
local government. This party changed the traditional electoral paradigm in the Province of Santa Fe, largely displacing
Peronism
Peronism, also known as justicialism, is an Argentine ideology and movement based on the ideas, doctrine and legacy of Juan Perón (1895–1974). It has been an influential movement in 20th- and 21st-century Argentine politics. Since 1946, P ...
and the
UCR in that district.
Results
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
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and former politician who served as the 56th president of Argentina from 2007 to 2015, and later as the 37th Vice ...
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
Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...
in his home district, La Rioja (though he won the first minority seat).
Chamber of Deputies
Senate
Notes
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{{Argentine elections
2005
2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
2005 elections in Argentina
Presidency of Néstor Kirchner