Peruvian Government submits to Congress an “urgent” initiative to bring forward elections to 2023

The Peruvian Government formally submitted this Wednesday to Congress a bill with “urgent character” that proposes the development of general elections this 2023 as a solution to the political and social crisis that the country is going through due to the protests that have left 65 dead.

As informed yesterday by the President of the Council of Ministers, Alberto Otárola, the legislative initiative was submitted to the legislative body shortly after that body rejected for the second time to approve a substitute text to bring forward the elections this year.

Outside the Government Palace, the Premier explained that the new bill establishes that the first electoral round will be held on the second Sunday of next October and the second round, if necessary, in December.

According to the special transitory provisions, the current President of the country, Dina Boluarte, will conclude her term of office on December 31 of this year, while the members of Congress will do so on December 29. Representatives to the Andean Parliament will finish on December 31, 2026.

Another provision establishes that Congress may approve several laws related to celebrating the General Elections of 2023 until next February 28.

In this context, Otárola urged the Parliament to “promptly” put the new Government project on its agenda and return to “discuss and reflect on the need for peace and tranquility” that the country requires amid the days of anti-government protests.

On the other hand, he questioned the impossibility of Congress reaching a consensus to approve today a bill that proposed complementary elections in December for the new President and elected members of Congress to complete the government term 2021-2026.

He maintained that the vote expressed today by the Parliament, which achieved 54 votes in favor, 68 against, and two abstentions, “does not reflect the sentiment of the country”.

He regretted that despite the effort of several political groups for a consensus, they did not achieve the minimum 87 votes required for the bill to pass to a second discussion in the next legislature.

However, he considered that “there is still room for dialogue and successive approximations”, so he hopes that “the Congress will be up to the circumstances”.

The initiative presented today by Otárola was announced last January 29 by the President of the country, Dina Boluarte, who considered that it responds to the “imperative need to improve the levels of democratic legitimacy of the political representation of the country”.

At that time, the President indicated that her administration would present a second initiative so that the newly elected Congress would entrust the Constitution Commission with the “total reform” of the 1993 Constitution.

After its approval, it should be submitted to a popular referendum.

In this respect, the Prime Minister recently clarified that this does not imply a Constituent Assembly.

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