Twenty-two days after Peruvians went to the polls, the result is now final. The scrutiny of the presidential second round concluded this Monday and confirmed the victory of who will become the next president of Peru after winning by a very narrow margin of 49,641 votes over the leftist candidate Roberto Sánchez.
The final data published by the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE) grants the Fuerza Popular candidate 50.135% of the valid votes, with 9,223,396 votes, compared to 49.865% and 9,173,755 votes obtained by Sánchez.
The difference is equivalent to just a few tenths and makes these elections one of the closest elections in Peruvian history.
Fujimori gets it in the fourth time
The victory also has an enormous symbolic weight for Peruvian politics. After three consecutive defeats in presidential second rounds, Fujimori finally manages to achieve the Presidency in his fourth attempt.
The leader had previously fallen against Ollanta Humala in 2011, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski in 2016 and Pedro Castillo in 2021. Now, fifteen years after his first candidacy, he manages to reach the Government Palace and complete a political objective that seemed to elude him election after election.
The National Election Jury plans to officially proclaim the results on July 3. You will then receive your credentials on the 15th and She will be sworn in as president on July 28, coinciding with the celebration of the country’s independence.
The return of the surname Fujimori
The election also means the return of Fujimorism to power 25 years after the fall of Alberto Fujimori.
The former president left office in 2000 after a serious political crisis and a gigantic corruption scandal that ended with his sentence to 25 years in prison for crimes of corruption and human rights violations.
During the campaign, Keiko Fujimori openly claimed her father’s legacy, highlighting the economic growth experienced by Peru during that decade and the defeat of armed groups such as Sendero Luminoso.
At the same time, he avoided distancing himself from a political heritage that continues to deeply divide Peruvian society.
Sánchez does not recognize the result
The political tension, far from disappearing, could remain in the coming weeks. Roberto Sánchez, who participated in the elections on behalf of the imprisoned former president Pedro Castillo has already announced that he will not recognize Fujimori as legitimate president.
The leftist leader denounces alleged irregularities in the vote cast by Peruvians residing abroad and maintains, without having presented conclusive evidence, that these votes altered the final result.
His party had requested the annulment of part of those votes, a request that was rejected by the electoral authorities.
The challenge of stabilizing Peru
The future president will inherit a country marked by a deep institutional crisis. Peru has had eight presidents in the last ten yearsan instability that has eroded citizen trust and paralyzed numerous reforms.
The main electoral flag of Fujimori It was precisely the promise to “recover order” in a context of growing concern about citizen insecurity and the advance of organized crime.
His mandate, which will extend until 2031, It will be watched closely both inside and outside of Peru.
Not only because it puts an end to a decade of enormous political volatility, but because it returns to power the most influential and controversial surname in the country’s recent history.
