Peru's runoff to pit Fujimori's daughter against Castillo's political heir
Key takeaways
- S nchez, of Juntos por el Per , took 12% and is ahead of Lima's former mayor, Rafael L pez Aliaga, of Renovaci n Popular, by some 14,500 votes.
- Fujimori, 50, arrives at her fourth runoff with a new strategy.
- S nchez, a psychologist and former minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism under Castillo, entered his closing campaign rally on horseback wearing a wide-brimmed hat —gestures copied from his mentor.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Peru will hold a presidential runoff on 7 June pitting Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former President Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000), against Roberto S nchez, a congressman and self-proclaimed political heir of Pedro Castillo, the rural schoolteacher who reached the presidency in 2021 and is now serving an eleven-year, five-month sentence for the failed self-coup he attempted on 7 December 2022.
With 99.66% of ballots processed a month after the first round on 12 April, the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE) confirms Fujimori, of the Fuerza Popular party, in first place with 17.17% of valid votes —her lowest starting share in four consecutive bids for the presidency. S nchez, of Juntos por el Per , took 12% and is ahead of Lima's former mayor, Rafael L pez Aliaga, of Renovaci n Popular, by some 14,500 votes. L pez Aliaga alleges fraud, though no actor has produced supporting evidence; the National Election Jury has ordered a comprehensive computer audit of the first round. The resignation of ONPE chief Piero Corvetto, after delays at polling stations in Lima, has deepened the climate of mistrust.
Fujimori, 50, arrives at her fourth runoff with a new strategy. After losing in 2011, 2016 and 2021, the Fuerza Popular leader has openly embraced the memory of her father, who was convicted of corruption, crimes against humanity and espionage, and died in 2024. I want to be president so I can govern as my father did, she said days before the vote. On election day she visited the family tomb.