Argentina's Leftist Ruling Party Scores Local Electoral Victory

Edited by Ivan Martínez
2015-08-25 12:47:15

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Buenos Aires, August 25 (teleSUR-RHC)-- Argentina's socialist ruling party Front for Victory (FPV) scored another massive electoral victory in Tucuman that angered the opposition, which resorted to violence for a second day in a row on Monday, in events that included theft and torching ballot boxes, and attacking police. About 20 people were reportedly injured.

Government official and vice presidential candidate of the FPV, Carlos Zannini said the opposition is claiming electoral fraud in Tucuman, located about 800 miles northwest of the capital Buenos Aires, but that they “ordered the ballot boxes torched. One person has been detained and he is from the opposition front Agreement for the Bicentennial.”

Zannini is participating in the elections along with Daniel Scioli, the presidential candidate for the FPV.

The official said the opposition refuses to accept that the ruling party candidate won the elections by a sweeping majority.

“They are denouncing fraud simply because they don't want to accept the wide victory of [the FPV candidate for the governorship of Tucuman, Juan] Manzur,” he added, explaining that “they've been planning this actions since before Sunday's elections.”

However, Zannini said and in-depth investigation would be carried out to give the case further transparency and clarity.

In Tucuman, all opposition parties realized that it would be difficult to defeat the FPV candidate Manzur, prompting them to form a coalition.

More than 20 people were injured after thousands of opposition protesters attacked police for no reason in Tucuman. Police were cornered by the angry crowds and had no choice but to react by dispersing the mobs with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Manzur, who was President Cristina Fernandez's health minister, won the Tucuman elections with 54 percent of the vote.

The opposition candidate Jose Cano garnered about 40 percent of the vote.

Opposition members and supporters torched 40 ballot boxes. The incumbent Governor Jose Alpevorich said he vote was completely transparent, but recommended that a complementary vote take place in “those 40 polling stations.”

Scioli recently won the primary elections with more than 38 percent of the vote, besting opponent Buenos Aires mayor Mauricio Macri by 16 percent. Scioli, who is the current governor of province of Buenos Aires now heads to the October genereal elections as the clear front runner with more than eight million votes.


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