Argentina’s Senate has narrowly approved a divisive bill crucial to libertarian President Javier Milei’s economic reform agenda as masses of protesters clashed with police in the capital.

The Senate voted 37 to 36 late on Wednesday to provisionally pass the plan, engaging in an all-night marathon session that extended into the following day, to approve each article of the proposed package, which features sweeping measures on privatization and tax incentives for investors.

The Senate was split evenly over the bill, with Vice President Victoria Villarruel casting the tie-breaking vote.

“Today, there are two Argentinas,” Villarruel stated during the session. “One that resorts to violence, sets cars on fire, throws stones, and debates democracy, and another that awaits change with great labor and sacrifice as voted for.”

As senators cast their votes, thousands of protesters surged into the streets, setting cars ablaze and hurling Molotov cocktails, while federal security forces responded with tear gas and water cannons.

Seven individuals, including five lawmakers, were hospitalized after exposure to pepper spray, according to the Ministry of Health. Numerous others were treated onsite.

Authorities reported at least 10 arrests, with nine police officers sustaining injuries, as disclosed by a Ministry of Security spokesperson to the AFP news agency.

‘Anarcho-capitalist’

The vote signified a substantial victory for Milei, a self-proclaimed “anarcho-capitalist,” whose ambitions to reform the government and economy have encountered considerable opposition in Argentina’s Congress, which he has criticized as a “nest of rats.”

An outside political figure with just two years of legislative experience, his party, Liberty Advances, holds only 15 percent of the lower house seats and 10 percent in the Senate.

“Tonight represents a triumph for the Argentine people and a first step toward reclaiming our greatness,” Milei shared on X, describing his reforms as “the most ambitious legislative overhaul in the past 40 years.”

The bill is central to Milei’s agenda for overhauling an ailing economy. Executive actions to date, involving subsidy cuts and public sector layoffs, have exacerbated a recession, pushed poverty to 55 percent, and sparked 300 percent annual inflation.

Lawmakers from across the political spectrum debated various aspects of the 238-article reform bill, proposing a one-year economic emergency state which allows Milei to dissolve federal agencies and privatise about twelve public entities.

Other proposals aimed at limiting access to minimum retirement pensions and reducing labor safeguards were criticized by leftist opponents as a threat to workers.

The bill also proposed tax, customs, and foreign exchange incentives to attract investment in the crisis-hit country.

Before the Senate's preliminary approval, opposition legislators argued the bill could undermine decades of progress.

Opposition senator Mariano Recalde remarked the labor reforms in particular would “return us to a time when employees had no labor rights.”

The lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, passed the bill in April. If the Senate fully approves it, the measure will return to the lower house for a final vote.

The proposal is opposed by a broad coalition, including social organizations, left-leaning political factions, retirees, teachers, and labor unions.

Protesters fear the bill will exacerbate unemployment and rising consumer prices.

“The lives of Argentinians are at stake,” said protester and social leader Luis D’Elia. “This toxic approach has failed multiple times in Argentina and we won’t let this continue.”

Teacher Miriam Rajovitcher, 54, expressed concern that if passed, she would lose many labor and pension rights. “I am far worse off,” she said.