Lead

Peruvians went to the polls on Sunday to elect their ninth president in a decade, with crime-weary voters facing a record 35 candidates on the ballot. The election comes amid surging violent crime, corruption scandals, and deep public disillusionment with the political class.

About 27 million Peruvians were obliged to vote, according to multiple reports, with polling stations opening at 7am local time and closing at 5pm, with preliminary results expected shortly afterward.

Coverage Comparison

Coverage from Al Jazeera, France 24, and The Guardian consistently highlighted the historic nature of the election and the overwhelming voter fatigue. All outlets noted that corruption and crime are the dominant concerns, and all reported that most candidates are polling well below the 50 percent threshold needed to win outright, making a June run-off seem all but certain.

Al Jazeera's reporting focused on the influence of former US President Donald Trump in the region, particularly through the candidacy of Rafael Lopez Aliaga, who has styled himself as the most pro-Trump option. The outlet noted that Lopez Aliaga's support has waned, and it questioned whether embracing Trump would alienate voters.

France 24 and The Guardian emphasized the scale of the ballot—measuring nearly half a meter—and the wide variety of candidates, including a comedian, a media baron, and a political dynasty heiress. Both outlets reported that pre-election surveys show no candidate above 15 percent, and both quoted voters expressing deep disillusionment with the political class.

Key Claims

  • A crowded field: All five sources confirmed that 35 presidential candidates are running, a record for Peru. The ballot is so long that it measures nearly half a meter, according to France 24 and The Guardian.
  • Keiko Fujimori's narrow lead: Fujimori, a three-time presidential candidate and daughter of the late autocrat Alberto Fujimori, holds a narrow lead in most opinion polls, as reported by France 24 and The Guardian. She is making her fourth bid for the presidency and has reached run-offs in the last three elections, losing by narrow margins each time.
  • Crime and corruption as top concerns: All sources cited surging violent crime and corruption as the main issues driving voters. Peru's homicide rate has more than doubled in the last decade, and the number of extortion cases reported to police jumped more than eightfold, from 3,200 to 26,500 a year, according to France 24—a figure that one report noted is unlikely to be the full total.
  • Right-wing candidates dominate: According to pollsters at Ipsos, conservative candidates dominate the top five, with only one leftist, former trade and tourism minister Roberto Sanchez, in that group. Right-wing candidates have vied to outdo each other with extreme promises, including executing hitmen and imprisoning delinquents in island jails surrounded by snakes, as reported by France 24.
  • Rafael Lopez Aliaga and the Trump factor: Lopez Aliaga, a hardline ex-mayor and business magnate, has run a far-right campaign that embraced Trump, expressing support for US bombing of drug-smuggling boats and proposing US military intervention in Peru to capture gang leaders, according to Al Jazeera. However, his support has fallen to about 7 percent, according to an Ipsos poll cited by Al Jazeera.

Perspectives

Peruvians are voting with a profound sense of frustration. "I wouldn't vote for anyone. I'm so disappointed with everyone in power," clothing merchant Maria Fernandez, 56, told AFP. "We've been governed by nothing but corrupt, thieving scoundrels," she added, in quotes carried by France 24 and The Guardian. A fruit seller in Lima told Reuters she was still undecided, saying, "Peru is a mess, and there's no candidate worth voting for," as reported by Al Jazeera.

The election is also being watched internationally as a signal for the region's political trajectory. "This is one of the most unpredictable elections on record," said Urpi Torrado of the polling company Datum Internacional, quoted by The Guardian. "There could be surprises this Sunday because we don't know who will make it through to the second round."

While some analysts suggest the election is not a referendum on Trump, his influence in Latin America remains a controversial topic, as Al Jazeera noted. The US has become more active in the region under Trump, and Lopez Aliaga's overtures to the Trump administration have not boosted his standing, raising questions about the effectiveness of such alliances.