Rural ballots flip race 20 hours into count

Roberto Sanchez, candidate of "Peru Together," speaks at a campaign rally in Lima, Peru, on June 4. [EPA]
Roberto Sanchez, candidate of "Peru Together," speaks at a campaign rally in Lima, Peru, on June 4. [EPA]

Left-wing candidate Roberto Sanchez of "Peru Together" has pulled ahead of right-wing rival Keiko Fujimori of "People Power" in Peru's presidential election, overtaking her 20 hours after vote counting began. It was Fujimori's fourth presidential bid.

With 93.9 percent of ballots counted as of 1 p.m. local time Monday, Sanchez held 50.008 percent of the vote against Fujimori's 49.992 percent, according to Peru's National Elections Office (ONPE).

The margin separating the two candidates stood at roughly 3,000 votes. It marked the first time Sanchez had led since counting began.

Sanchez had trailed by as much as 5 to 6 percentage points early in the count, when urban centers reported first. He rapidly closed the gap as ballots from his strongholds in rural areas and the inland highlands began coming in.

Exit polls released immediately after voting closed had shown Fujimori ahead by about 1 percentage point, but a rapid-count sample analysis subsequently put Sanchez in front, shifting the momentum.

Peruvian media outlets are cautiously projecting a narrow Sanchez lead based on the trend. Both the exit polls and the rapid count fall within the margin of error, however, making it too early to call the result.

After the rapid-count results were released, Fujimori said in a statement: "We are facing a statistical tie at this stage, and there is no winner of the presidential election at this point. It will take a long time before we know the final result."

Official certification of the winner is expected to take considerable time. In the 2021 presidential election, an equally razor-thin race meant the winner was not confirmed until 43 days after the runoff vote.

Grecia Renteria, a spokesperson for Peru's National Elections Tribunal (JNE), said Monday that the runoff result would likely not be known until mid-July, given the probability that a public recount and other verification procedures would be required.


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