Argentina’s Peronists Sweep Back Into Power in Populist Shift to the Left

Argentina’s Peronists Sweep Back Into Power in Populist Shift to the Left
Then presidential candidate Alberto Fernandez leaves a polling station after casting his vote, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Oct. 27, 2019. Agustin Marcarian/Reuters
|Updated:

BUENOS AIRES—Argentina’s Peronists swept back into power on Sunday, ousting conservative president Mauricio Macri in an election result that shifts Latin America’s No. 3 economy firmly back toward the left as it continues to be battered by economic crisis.

Peronist Alberto Fernandez had 47.79 percent of the vote, ahead of Macri’s 40.71 percent, with more than 90 percent of ballots counted, putting the center-left challenger over the 45 percent threshold to avoid a runoff and win the election outright.