Keiko Fujimori closes in on second place in Peruvian presidential election

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori advanced to second place in the Peruvian presidential elections, with 13.09% of the votes cast this Sunday, behind the far-left Pedro Castillo, who reached 17.49% after 73.018% of the votes have been processed.

The official results confirm Fujimori’s tendency to increase the votes in her favor, according to unofficial projections on Sunday that she would dispute the second round for the Presidency with Castillo.

Economist Hernando de Soto has moved into third place, close behind Fujimori with 12.77% of the votes, while right-wing businessman Rafael López secured 12.46% of the votes.

In raw numbers, Castillo has so far secured 1,901,163 votes, Fujimori 1,423,286, De Soto 1,387,492 and López 1,354,716.

Behind these candidates, and virtually with no possibility of a surprise, are the center-left Yonhy Lescano, with 8.9% of the votes, left-wing Verónika Mendoza, with 7.87%, businessman César Acuña, with 5.87% and the former mayor George Forsyth, with 5.79%.

Consequently, Castillo is confirmed as the great surprise of the Peruvian elections, while Fujimori, if the trajectory is confirmed, will reach the ballot, for the third time.

The leader of the Popular Force party and daughter of imprisoned former president Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) lost the second round of the 2011 presidential elections to Ollanta Humala and the 2016 elections to economist Pedro Pablo Kuczynski.

Castillo is a teacher and leader of a radical faction of the teachers’ union, while Fujimori defends an authoritarian right-wing tendency that rescues the legacy of her father, who is serving 25 years in prison for crimes against humanity.

More than 25.2 million voters were called to Peru’s general elections to elect a president, two vice presidents, 130 legislators and five representatives to the Andean Parliament for the 2021-2026 period.

Source: efe