Argentine Mayors
Researched and edited by Alidad Vassigh*

30 August 2011: Argentina is a federal state, made up of 23 provinces, a federal district and more than 1,000 municipalities. The country is predominantly urban, with around 83 per cent of the population living in cities. With a population of around 12 million, the capital city Buenos Aires, accounts for more than 30 per cent of the national population. The cities of Rosario, Córdoba and Mendoza each have a population of more than one million and 39 others having populations of over 50,000.

Municipalities generally have few powers and little financial muscle. They are usually responsible for defining land use, zoning, regulating pollution, waste collection, urban hygiene, lighting, street conservation and sewage. They have tended to suffer from a lack of financial resources. Although they have two sources of income, including user fees, they rely mostly on transfers from provincial governments. Historically municipalities have received between 5-20 per cent of such funds, although the average during the 1980s was just 10 per cent.

Mayors of the largest cities in Argentina
(Readers are invited to supply information on additional Argentine cities and mayors. Please insert Argentine mayors' into the subject line of any emails.)