still is the country’s leading political force.

But as regards the 2003 presidential candidacy, the electoral result has not been definitive. All PJ governors have won in their respective provinces adding Eduardo Duhalde’s victory in Buenos Aires.

Reutemann wins in Santa Fe with the record negative vote. De la Sota wins in Cordoba although with fewer votes than in previous elections. Duhalde and Ruckauf win in Buenos Aires with 700,000 fewer votes that those obtained by Hilda Duhalde in 1997 when she lost against Fernandez Meijide. Finally, from prison Menem can boast about the victory of his party in La Rioja with almost 60% of the votes through the list headed by his brother.

Nobody has scored a landslide victory over anyone but nobody has been fully out of the race. It is clear that within the PJ two ideologies are emerging: the one represented by Buenos Aires characterized by a populist thinking and that of Cordoba and Santa Fe after the style of the European Christian Democracy.

In the Alliance field, the crisis worsens as the percentage dropped to less than half and votes to only 40% of those obtained in the two previous elections. However, the Federal Capital is the only district where the alliance won after losing in Mendoza and Entre Ríos, where it ruled. Despite the low result in the Capital –only one fourth of the votes they obtained in the previous elections- Terragno and Ibarra are already thinking of their presidential candidacy while from Chaco, Angel Rozas, is on the same path after the high percentage obtained in the election.

On the ‘progress-side’, ARI became the third force by seizing 9% of the votes at national level and form the third bloc in the Lower House as long as provincials are not counted combined. But the election showed once again that it is an electoral phenomenon of the Capital Federal with low support in the interior of the country.

Besides, it will not be easy merge into a single political party Farinello’s Polo Social and the left-leaning parties that in the Capital reached parliamentary representation.

But the center-right has been totally absent from the polls. Nobody played the role of Aramburu in the ‘60s, of Manrique in the ‘70s or the UceDe in the ‘80s. Cavallo’s party with 10% of the votes in the presidential election of 1999 and 33% in the elections for Mayor partnered with the PJ lacked enough national weight.

Nevertheless, his party obtained two national deputies partnered with the PJ in key provinces such as Cordoba and the Capital city. Paradoxically, should Beliz and Liendo ran in alliance, the would have won in this district since combined they led the Alliance by 6 points.

If the PJ candidacy was finally in the hands of De la Sota and Reutemann, center-right sectors are likely to reedit the coalition with the PJ that existed with Menem in the ‘90s.

Many things can happen in the two years to go before the presidential election but this election seems to increases chances for the PJ to reach power again in 2003 as long as it successfully copes with the struggle for the presidential campaign to begin in coming months.