Peru’s presidential race is set for another drawn-out count after early results on Sunday showed the race was too close to call.
In a campaign focused on crime and the country’s socio-economic divide, Peruvians chose between Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of hardline former President Alberto Fujimori, and leftist congressman Roberto Sanchez, who often campaigns wearing a cowboy hat and, like imprisoned former President Pedro Castillo, has strong support in rural areas.
A quick count by pollster Ipsos showed Sanchez with a slight lead of 50.3% of the vote and Fujimori with 49.7%. The count uses a representative sampling of polling stations across the country and while not an official tally, it has been an accurate indicator in previous elections.
The Ipsos quick count matched the final count in 2021 and 2011, and while off by 0.4% in 2016 it showed the correct winner.
Alfredo Torres, the head of Ipsos, said the count reflected a technical tie and a full count would be needed to determine the winner.
Peru’s ONPE electoral authority said a full count would be completed by mid-July.
Fujimori currently has 52.65% of the vote to Sanchez’s 47.35%, with about half of the votes counted.
Votes from the capital Lima, Fujimori’s stronghold, tend to be counted first. Sanchez is expected to gain ground as ballots from rural areas are tallied.
Speaking from a Lima hotel after the Ipsos quick count was announced, Fujimori called on supporters to remain calm and said there would be “long days ahead before we know the final result.”
Markets have been rattled by the prospect of a Sanchez victory, which would buck Latin America’s recent rightward shift.
Chile, Argentina, Costa Rica and Ecuador have elected right-wing presidents in recent elections, and Bolivia ended two decades of socialist rule in its presidential contest last year.
Peruvian voters have told pollsters they are overwhelmingly concerned with crime. Homicide and extortion rates have soared, leading to widespread protests and the ouster of former President Dina Boluarte.
Fujimori, who previously tried to distance herself from her father’s authoritarian, tough-on-crime policies, won the first round of voting in April as she leaned into his legacy. She compared his fight against left-wing Maoist insurgents to the country’s current struggle with organized crime. Fujimori’s father was later jailed for human rights abuses and died in 2024.
This election marks Fujimori’s fourth presidential runoff. She lost the 2021 race by about 45,000 votes, or just over 0.2%, to Castillo.
Election observers and Peru’s ONPE electoral authority said that voting had taken place without major issues. The first-round vote in April was marred by delays that led to an extra day of voting and held up results.
Earlier on Sunday, Fujimori said her party had recruited 95,000 representatives to monitor polling stations around the country. Sanchez called on people in the “most remote villages” to go out and vote.
MARKETS NERVOUS ABOUT SANCHEZ’S MOMENTUM
Sanchez is hoping he can replicate Castillo’s victory by focusing on Peru’s other major political issue: inequality and the vast socioeconomic divide between those living in Lima and rural areas.
He has promised an agenda of ambitious reform, including a new constitution, overhaul of mining concessions and boosting investment in rural regions.
Sanchez’s proposals have resonated with many, including the country’s growing informal mining sector, but have rattled markets. Peruvian stocks fell on Friday as polls showed him gaining momentum and pulling level with Fujimori.
Tensions are high after the chaotic first round led to accusations of fraud and threats of protests from both camps. Whoever wins will also have to deal with a fragmented Congress that has removed three presidents in the last five years.
“It’s complicated in such a polarized world and election. The feelings are hard to process, but I hope whoever wins, there can be some understanding and reconciliation,” said Eric Beya, a young voter in Lima.
Polls in the South American country opened at 7 a.m. (1200 GMT) and officially closed at 5 p.m. (2200 GMT), but remain open if there are still voters waiting to cast their ballots. The vote tally will be updated throughout the night.
-Reuters
