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Union for the Homeland
Argentine political coalition From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Union for the Homeland (Spanish: Unión por la Patria, UP) is a political and electoral coalition of Peronist political parties in Argentina. It has been the main opposition coalition since December 2023.
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The coalition was formed to compete in the 2023 general election,[5] and is a successor to the previous Frente de Todos coalition, whose candidate in the 2019 presidential election, Alberto Fernández, was successfully elected President of Argentina.[6] The coalition is centred on the Justicialist Party and its allies both on the federal and provincial levels, including the Renewal Front of Sergio Massa, who was the coalition's candidate for president in the 2023 presidential election.[7][8]
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History
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Background
In the run-up to the 2019 presidential election, the Kirchnerist faction of the Justicialist Party arranged for the establishment of a common Peronist electoral front. This project ultimately materialized with the formation of the Frente de Todos coalition, which comprised the Justicialist majority along with a number of other parties of the political left and centre. This alliance was itself a successor to both the short-lived Citizen's Unity bloc formed for the 2017 midterm elections as well as the Front for Victory, which served as the political instrument of the Kirchnerist political camp between 2003 and 2017. The alliance presented Alberto Fernández as its sole candidate in the 2019 presidential primaries, in which he secured just under 48% of the vote. In the subsequent general election, Fernández again garnered 48% of the vote, against the 40% of incumbent president Mauricio Macri of the Juntos por el Cambio coalition, ousting the sitting administration and returning the Peronists to power after four years in the opposition.[9] Fernández, along with his vice president, the former President of Argentina Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, went on to govern the country for the ensuing four-year period. Halfway through this term, the Frente de Todos coalition suffered a significant defeat in the 2021 Argentine legislative election, losing seats in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, and thereby losing control of Congress for the first time in nearly 40 years.[10]
2023 election
In April 2023, President Alberto Fernandez announced that he would not seek re-election in the next presidential election.[11] In the primary elections in August of that year, Sergio Massa defeated Juan Grabois by a margin of nearly 16 percentage points, although it became the worst result for a ruling Peronist coalition since the PASO was first implemented in 2009.[8]
In the runoff in November 2023, Libertarian candidate Javier Milei defeated Massa in the second round with 55.65% of the vote, the highest percentage since Argentina's transition to democracy. Massa conceded defeat shortly before the official results were published.[12][13]
Tensions and Realignments
In July 2024, several governors and key figures of Peronism including Cristina Kirchner and Axel Kicillof, distanced themselves from President Javier Milei’s proposed “Pacto de Mayo”.[14]
In November 2024, Cristina Kirchner was declared President of the Justicialist Party after Ricardo Quintela withdrew from the race. This solidified her role as the central figure in the Peronist movement, though internal divisions remained significant.[15]
Both the Massa and Kicillof factions announced plans to run with separate lists in the 2025 legislative elections, deepening internal fractures and setting the stage for a more visibly fragmented coalition.[16]
Fragmentation and Strategic Reorientation
In early 2025, the suspension of the national primaries (PASO) triggered further internal conflict. At least 25 UP lawmakers supported the government’s initiative in the Chamber of Deputies, revealing fractures in the party’s united front.[17]
In March 2025, four UP senators broke away to form their own bloc called “Convicción Federal”, led by Fernando Salino. The new group aimed to express a more autonomous and federalist vision within Peronism.[18]
On March 26, Senator Teresa García introduced a bill in the Buenos Aires City Senate to abolish the primaries and align local elections with national ones. This proposal gained support from both Kirchnerist and Massa-aligned legislators, demonstrating tactical cooperation despite broader strategic differences.[19]
At the same time, UP advanced its own version of the “Clean Record” reform (similar to “Ficha Limpia”), opposing the government’s stance. Their proposal stated that a candidate should only be disqualified after a final ruling by the Supreme Court, a move widely seen as a defensive measure in support of Cristina Kirchner.[20]
For the May 2025 midterm elections in Buenos Aires City, UP rebranded its local coalition as “Es Ahora Buenos Aires”, with Leandro Santoro as its main candidate. The new alliance included the PJ, Kirchnerist groups, and moderate radical sectors, promoting a centrist platform while sharply criticizing the government for what they called its “cruelty.”[21][22]
In May 2025, Cristina Kirchner called for a strategic renewal of the political space. She proposed shifting away from the traditional “strong state” model to one focused on efficiency, productivity, and innovation. She also issued a mea culpa for losing touch with the electorate and acknowledged UP’s regional defeats.[23]
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Ideology
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Perspective
Union for the Homeland is a Peronist[1] coalition, along with its internal currents, Federal Peronism[2] and Kirchnerism.[2] Experts on the subject claim that the coalition exhibits right-wing populist characteristics associated with Peronism,[24] while others argue that it is a left-wing populist alliance.[25][26] The coalition includes communist,[27] conservative,[28] Catholic[29] and progressive parties.[30] Despite it broad character, the coalition has extensive ties with the trade union General Confederation of Labour,[25] The party's ideology has also been described as labourist and nationalist, in line with Peronism.[31]
Political position
The coalition has been described as left-wing,[32] centre-left,[1][33][32][34] center,[3][35][34][36][37] centre-right[36][37] and right-wing.[38] It has also been described as big tent.[39] It is formed by parties ranging from the left to the right.[40][41][42]
Although the media predominantly characterize it as a center-left coalition,[43][44][45][46] scholars contend that there has been a relatively sustained shift to the right,[a] marked by increasingly conservative presidential candidacies,[47] and the concealment of the center-left Kirchnerist faction.[48]
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Member parties
Electoral performance
Presidential elections
Legislative elections
Chamber of Deputies
Senate
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Notes
References
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