'The results are not what we hoped for' – Massa concedes defeat

Economy Minister Sergio Massa conceded defeat in Argentina’s election run-off on Sunday night, congratulating his rival Javier Milei as the “president of the next four years.”

Ruling coalition presidential candidate Massa addressed Peronist militants and supporters from a stage at the ruling party’s bunker in Chacarita. He vowed to deliver a peaceful, democratic transition and to work with Milei to achieve it.

"We have also put forward to the president-elect and the president of the nation [Alberto Fernández] the responsibility of starting up tomorrow mechanisms of liaison and transition of democratic change so that Argentines, in the next 19 days, have neither doubts nor uncertainties regarding the normal economic, social, political and institutional functioning," he explained.

Admitting defeat, Massa said it had been a challenging campaign.

"I want to tell you that obviously the results are not what we hoped for and I have communicated with Javier Milei to congratulate him and wish him luck because he is the president that the majority of Argentines elected," said the minister.

"I did so convinced that the most important thing we have to leave the Argentines tonight is the message that coexistence, dialogue and respect for peace, in the face of so much violence and disqualification, is the best path we can take,” he added.

The economy minister admitted that a “stage” of his political life was “coming to an end” but he promised to defend his party’s core values.

"There were two paths. We clearly chose the path of defending the welfare system in the hands of the state. We chose to promote and defend throughout the campaign the path of defending education and public health as core values," he said.

In the same vein, he added: "We chose to defend national industry, Argentine labour, our PyMES [SMEs], workers with rights, because we feel that this is the best way to build prosperity, upward social mobility and progress for our nation.”

– TIMES/NA