Argentina Begins Counting Votes in Polarized Presidential Election

(Bloomberg) -- Argentines are anxiously awaiting the outcome of Sunday’s polarized election runoff that will determine who will preside over the crisis-hit nation during the next four years.

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Polls closed at 6 p.m. local time across the country, and electoral authorities are expected to start releasing partial vote counts in the next few hours.

Argentines had to choose between Sergio Massa, the man currently in charge of an economy reeling from 143% inflation, or Javier Milei, a libertarian who has promised to fix that problem by adopting the dollar as legal tender and shutting down the central bank.

Read More: Argentina Has Hard Choice in Presidential Runoff: What to Watch

The outcome is also likely to have a significant impact on Argentine assets, particularly the nation’s battered currency. The peso’s official exchange rate has lost half of its value so far this year and is bound to post more losses no matter who the next president is, but the speed of devaluation will likely be faster if Milei wins.

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