At a Glance:

Government Portal

Year became a federation: 1853

Current constitution in force since: 1994

Constituent units: 23 provinces, 1 federal district, and 5 regions [Spanish]

Head of State: President

Head of Government: President

Legislature:
Upper House: Senate [Spanish]
Lower House: Chamber of Deputies [Spanish]

Argentina
The end of the economic crisis: Exit strategies for federations Alejandro Arlia (left), Minister of the Economy of the Province of Buenos Aires, speaks about Argentina and the recent economic crisis. To his left are Diana Chebenova, the Forum's Director for South America; Patricia Farah, Technical and Administrative Coordinator, Federal Council of Fiscal Responsibility; and Martin Di Bella, Executive Director of the Tax Revenue Agency of the Province of Buenos Aires
Alejandro Arlia (left), Minister of the Economy of the Province of Buenos Aires, speaks about Argentina and the recent economic crisis. To his left are Diana Chebenova, the Forum's Director for South America; Patricia Farah, Technical and Administrative Coordinator, Federal Council of Fiscal Responsibility; and Martin Di Bella, Executive Director of the Tax Revenue Agency of the Province of Buenos Aires
In the recent economic crisis, many federal countries faced a difficult choice: either increase spending to create an economic stimulus, or else cling to their existing fiscal restraint policies and l  More Information

 

ArgentinaOur work in Argentina

The Forum has worked with local partners in Argentina since 2001 to organize learning events ranging from a comparative workshop on federalism to a seminar on fiscal responsibility for federations at the end of the economic crisis.

Federalism in Argentina

Democracy returned to Argentina in 1983, following a period of military dictatorship that culminated in the Falklands/Malvinas War of 1982, and federalism returned with it. Since then, Argentina has seen normal tensions between the executive branch and parliament, between its provinces and the federal government.

Argentina’s Federal Pact of 1831 –15 years after independence from Spain - laid the groundwork for the constitution that gave institutional form to the state.   Argentina was a representative democracy by the 1890s, although politics remained for the most part the domain of the elites.

In 1930, conservative forces launched a period of authoritarian rule leading to political instability which lasted until 1983. This 53-year era was interrupted by a decade dominated by Juan Domingo Perón, who transformed the working class and its organizations into political players before he was deposed by the military in 1955.

An economic crisis in 2001-02 sparked public protests and the successive resignations of several presidents. Néstor Carlos Kirchner from the Peronist party was elected president in 2003 and he was succeeded in 2007 by his wife, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.