Two right-wing political figures currently dominate voting intentions for the presidential election in Peru scheduled for April 12, according to a recent poll, but a large part of the electorate remains undecided.
According to a poll conducted by the Datum Internacional institute and broadcast on local television, Keiko Fujimori, leader of the Fuerza Popular party and daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori, garnered 10,7% of the vote. She was closely followed by Rafael López Aliaga, former mayor of Lima, who received 10%.
The two candidates are the only ones to achieve double-digit scores among the 36 contenders, a record number for a presidential election in the country. However, nearly two out of five voters surveyed indicated they had not yet chosen a candidate or did not plan to vote.
This low level of support suggests that a second round will be held on June 7, a common scenario in Peru where no candidate has won the election in the first round since the end of the 20th century.
The presidential campaign is taking place in a particularly unstable political context. Since 2018, the country has had eight different presidents, several of whom have been impeached or forced to leave office before the end of their terms. Four former heads of state are currently imprisoned.
The Peruvian Congress, largely dominated by the right and very unpopular with the population, further accentuated this instability by impeaching the last president last month, after the revelation of secret meetings with a Chinese businessman.
The list of candidates also includes atypical profiles, including a popular comedian, a wealthy businessman and a retired general, illustrating the fragmentation of the Peruvian political scene as the election approaches.
