The Argentine general election of 1946, the last for which only men were enfranchised, was held on 24 February. Voters chose both the President and their legislators.

Quick Facts 376 members of the Electoral College 189 votes needed to win, Registered ...

1946 Argentine general election

Presidential election
← 1937 24 February 1946 1951 →
376 members of the Electoral College 189 votes needed to win
Registered	3,477,169
Turnout	81.21%
Candidate Juan Domingo Perón José Tamborini Party Labour Party Radical Civic Union Alliance Radical Civic Union Renewal Board [es], Independent Party Democratic Union Running mate Hortensio Quijano Enrique Mosca Electoral vote 304 72 States carried 10 + CF 4 Popular vote 1,485,468 1,262,630 Percentage 53.71 45.65
Most voted party by province (left) and department (right).
President of Argentina before election Edelmiro Julián Farrell Elected President Juan Perón Labour Party
Legislative election
← 1942 24 February 1946 1948 →
158 seats in the Chamber of Deputies 80 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	82.25%
Party % Seats Labour Party 51.19% 109 Radical Civic Union 27.23% 44 National Democratic Party 7.64 3 Democratic Progressive Party 2.55 1 Blockist Radical Civic Union [es] 0.49 1 This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below. Results by province President of the Chamber of Deputies after Ricardo Guardo UCR-JR [es]

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Conservative rule, maintained through electoral fraud despite a moderate record, was brought to an end in a June 1943 coup d'état. Barking "orders of the day" every morning on the radio, the new regime enjoyed little approval. The devastating 1944 San Juan earthquake presented an opportunity to regain lost goodwill and the regime moved quickly, involving the private sector through nationwide fund-raising, entrusted to the Labor Minister, Juan Perón. Perón enlisted celebrities for the effort, among which was a radio matinee star of middling talent, Eva Duarte, who introduced herself to the Labor Minister by remarking that "nothing's missing, except a touch of Atkinson's". The effort's success and the rise of his ally, Edelmiro Farrell, within the junta, led to Perón's appointment as vice-president, which he leveraged in support of Argentina's struggling labor unions, particularly the CGT.

Perón's sudden clout led to growing rivalry among his junta colleagues, who had him arrested on October 9, a surprise move outdone by CGT leaders like retail workers' leader Ángel Borlenghi, the slaughterhouses' Cipriano Reyes and Eva Duarte, herself. Organizing a mass (and, at times, violent) demonstration for his release on the Plaza de Mayo, their October 17, 1945, mobilization marked a turning point in Argentine history: the creation of the Peronist movement. Capitulating to the political winds, the junta bestowed presidential powers on Perón, who initiated his program of mass nationalizations of institutions such as the universities and Central Bank. Calling elections for February 1946, Perón's opposition hastily arranged an alliance, the Democratic Union. Many in the centrist Radical Civic Union were steadfastly opposed to this ad hoc union with conservatives and the left, an intrinsic burden compounded by a white paper scathingly critical of Perón released by the U.S. Ambassador, Spruille Braden. The report, accusing Perón of fascist ties, allowed him to marginalize the Democratic Union (and their distinguished, though disastrously-named nominees, José Tamborini and Enrique Mosca – the "tambourine and the fly"). He quickly reframed the argument as one between "Perón or Braden", making this his rallying cry and winning the 1946 elections handily.

• Labor Party: Former Vice-president Juan Perón from Buenos Aires Province
• Democratic Union (UCR-led alliance): Former Congressman José Tamborini from the city of Buenos Aires

• Perón
• Tamborini