Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist who admires former U.S. Around 78% of the electorate voted Sunday, some eight points higher than in the primaries that Milei won, sending shockwaves through the nation. That “had a significant impact and evidently instilled more fear than anything else,” Fornoni said.Īndrei Roman, CEO of Brazil-based pollster Atlas Intel, whose latest survey was one of few showing Massa ahead, said one key to the result was lower abstention than in the primary elections held in August. He successfully focused messaging on the way in which Milei’s proposal to slash the size of the state - from halving the number of government ministries to deep spending cuts - would affect everyday life for Argentines, said Mariel Fornoni of the political consulting firm Management & Fit. Massa has been a leading figure in the center-left administration in power since 2019.

Former Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, of the main center-right opposition coalition, finished in third place with 23.8%. Most pre-election polls, which have been notoriously unreliable, gave Milei a slight lead and put Massa in second place. With 98.3% of the votes counted, Massa had 36.7% and Milei was at 30%, meaning the two will go to a November runoff.