Fujimori, Sanchez officially declared Peru's runoff candidates

Carla Samon Ros, Bloomberg News on May 17, 2026

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Peruvian electoral authorities officially confirmed conservative Keiko Fujimori and left-wing lawmaker Roberto Sánchez as candidates for a presidential runoff election on June 7, more than a month after the first round was held.

With all ballots counted, Fujimori took 17.2% of the vote in the first round on April 12, the National Jury of Elections announced Sunday in Lima. The daughter of the late President Alberto Fujimori is making her fourth bid for the presidency after finishing second in each of Peru’s last three elections.

Sánchez, who pitches himself as the heir of jailed former President Pedro Castillo, was second at 12%, some 20,000 votes ahead of third-place Rafael López Aliaga.

The runoff will spotlight two starkly divergent views on how to lead the politically turbulent nation. While Fujimori is considered pro-business, Sánchez has pledged to reform Peru’s market-friendly constitution and raise taxes on its mining industry.

The winner will be Peru’s fifth president since 2021 and will succeed interim President José María Balcázar on July 28 for a five-year term.

López Aliaga, a former Lima mayor, has signaled he’ll challenge the result. He has alleged electoral fraud, citing logistical problems on election day that prompted authorities to extend the vote for a day in parts of the capital.

While international observers said the logistical issues were unprecedented, they have said there’s no evidence of fraud.

Roberto Burneo, the election body’s leader, acknowledged “logistical difficulties and shortcomings” in the first-round vote, though he told reporters it took place within the bounds of the law. He also announced the creation of a committee of experts to support the runoff election.

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