Argentina’s libertarian President Javier Milei won decisive victories in key districts across the country in midterm elections on Sunday.

The results gave Milei a crucial vote of confidence that strengthens his ability to carry out his radical free-market experiment with billions of dollars in backing from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration.

In the election widely seen as a referendum on Milei's past two years in office, his upstart La Libertad Avanza party scored over 40% of votes compared with 31% for the left-leaning populist opposition movement, known as Peronism, exceeding analysts' projections.

Milei, a key ideological ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, said his party and allied blocs picked up 14 seats in the Senate and 64 in the lower house of Congress on Sunday, bolstering the government's support in the legislature enough to uphold presidential vetoes and block impeachment efforts.

At La Libertad Avanza headquarters late Sunday in downtown Buenos Aires, a beaming Milei hailed the election sweep as a mandate to press forward with his spending cuts and introduce ambitious tax and labor reforms. The results also automatically position him as a candidate for reelection in 2027.

"Argentinians told populism to stop. Populism Never Again," Milei exulted as his supporters cheered, referring to a succession of Peronist governments that brought Argentina infamy for its inflationary spirals and sovereign debt defaults.

In comparison, the results showed the left-leaning populist opposition movement, known as Peronism, winning over 31% of the vote — what analysts described as the alliance's poorest performance in years.

Perhaps never has an Argentine legislative election generated so much interest in Washington and Wall Street, particularly after U.S. President Donald Trump indicated that he could rescind $20 billion in financial assistance to his close ally in cash-strapped Argentina if Milei lost Sunday’s vote.

But the buzz around the election abroad wasn't felt in Argentina.

Even though voting is compulsory, electoral authorities reported a turnout rate of just under 68% Sunday, among the lowest recorded since the nation’s 1983 return to democracy.

Milei's government has been scrambling to avert a currency crisis ever since a major defeat by the Peronist opposition in a provincial election last month panicked markets and prompted a selloff in the peso that led to the U.S. Treasury’s extraordinary intervention.

A series of scandals — including bribery allegations against Milei’s powerful sister, Karina Milei — hurt the president’s image as an anti-corruption crusader and hit a nerve among voters reeling from his harsh austerity measures.

Although the budget cuts have significantly driven down inflation, from an annual high of 289% in April 2024 to just 32% last month, many Argentines are still struggling to make ends meet.

Price rises have outpaced salaries and pensions since Milei cut cost-of-living increases.

Households pay more for electricity and public transport since Milei cut subsidies. The unemployment rate is now higher than when the libertarian president took office.

AP video shot by Victor R. Calvano