Argentinian President Javier Milei’s party has pulled off a stunning win in the country’s legislative elections, according to early results, boosting his government’s ability to continue its economic overhaul.

Milei’s party, La Libertad Avanza, scored 40.84 percent of the votes cast for members of Congress on Sunday, compared with 31.64 percent for the opposition Peronist coalition, the results showed.

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The figure was based on a count of more than 90 percent of ballots cast.

The elections were the first national test of Milei’s support since he won office two years ago on a promise to revive the long-ailing Argentine economy through a series of painful reforms.

The libertarian leader was aiming to boost his small minority in Congress and maintain the support of United States President Donald Trump, whose administration recently provided Argentina with a hefty financial bailout but has threatened to pull away if Milei did not do well.

At La Libertad Avanza’s election night party, hundreds of Milei’s supporters celebrated the results with cheers, hugs, chants and even some tears.

“I’m very happy and excited; I didn’t expect such a large number,” Facundo Campos, a 38-year-old marketing consultant, told the AFP news agency.

The most surprising results of Sunday’s election were in Buenos Aires province, where Milei’s party clawed its way back from defeat in last month’s local elections to run neck-and-neck with the Peronists.

The province has long been a political stronghold for the Peronists, and the win for Milei’s party marked a dramatic political shift.

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In Sunday’s elections, Argentinians voted on half of the country’s lower Chamber of Deputies, or 127 seats, and for a third of those in the upper house, the Senate, or 24 seats.

The Peronist opposition movement holds the largest minority in both houses, while Milei’s relatively new party has only 37 deputies and six senators.

The result strengthens Milei’s hand as he moves ahead with his campaign to downsize the state and deregulate the economy – although he will still need to forge alliances in Congress with the centre-right to pass legislation.

Earlier this month, Washington pledged a $40bn potential bailout, including a $20bn currency swap to stabilise the value of the peso, and a possible $20bn “facility”.

But Trump has threatened to pull away if his populist ally performs poorly, warning that “if he doesn’t win, we’re not going to waste our time, because you have somebody whose philosophy has no chance of making Argentina great again”.

Analysts said Milei’s strong showing on Sunday looked likely to translate into at least a third of seats in the lower house – enough to defend presidential vetoes and prevent an impeachment effort.

“We had a much better election for the government than the polls predicted,” political analyst Sergio Berensztein told the Associated Press news agency.

But, he warned, “it’s a boost that should be taken with caution because the situation remains difficult both economically and politically”.

Milei’s government has been scrambling to avert a currency crisis ever since the defeat by the Peronist opposition in a provincial election last month panicked markets and prompted a selloff in the peso – a move led to the US Treasury’s extraordinary intervention.

A series of scandals – including bribery allegations against Milei’s powerful sister, Karina Milei – hurt the president’s image as an anti-corruption crusader and hit a nerve among voters reeling from his harsh austerity measures.

Although the budget cuts have significantly driven down inflation, from an annual high of 289 percent in April 2024 to just 32 percent last month, many Argentines are still struggling to make ends meet.

Price rises have outpaced salaries and pensions since Milei cut cost-of-living increases. Households pay more for electricity and public transport since Milei cut subsidies. The unemployment rate is now higher than when the libertarian president took office.