Peruvian voters face selection between 2 polarizing populists – KIRO 7 Information Seattle

LIMA, Peru – (AP) – Peruvian voters will vote between two polarizing populist candidates in a runoff for the president on Sunday as the coronavirus pandemic continues to plague the Andean country and smoldering anger has led to fears for greater political stability.

Political novice Pedro Castillo and Keiko Fujimori, who are running for their third candidacy for the presidency, have both promised COVID-19 vaccines for everyone and other strategies to alleviate the health emergency that has killed more than 180,000 people and pushed millions into poverty Has. The election follows a statistical revision by the Peruvian government that has more than doubled the previously officially recognized death toll.

Not only has the pandemic collapsed Peru’s medical and cemetery infrastructure, leaving millions unemployed and exposing long-standing inequalities in the country, it has also deepened people’s suspicion of the government for improperly managing the COVID-19 response and a secret vaccination campaign for the well-connected it broke out into a national scandal.

Amid protests and allegations of corruption, the South American country went through three presidents in November. Analysts are now warning that this election could be another turning point for simmering frustration among the people and bring more political instability.

“I think the risk of social unrest is high in both situations. It’s a time bomb, ”said Claudia Navas, an analyst at global control Risks. “I think if Castillo wins, people who support Fujimori or support the continuation of the economic model to some extent might protest.”

But Navas said, “A more complex scenario will develop if Fujimori wins because Castillo was able to create a discourse that has played well in some rural communities on the social divide and that the political and economic elites do Orchestrating things to stay in power. ” and maintain social inequalities. “

Surveys have shown that the candidates are practically level in the runoff on Sunday. In the first round of elections with 18 candidates, none received more than 20% support and both are strongly opposed by parts of Peruvian society.

Fujimori, a Conservative former Congresswoman, has promised people various bonuses, including a one-time payment of $ 2,500 to every family with at least one COVID-19 victim. She has also proposed distributing 40% of a mineral, oil or gas extraction tax to families who live near these areas.

Its supporters include wealthy players from the national soccer team and Mario Vargas Llosa, Peru’s most important author and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Vargas, who lost a presidential election to the candidate’s father, Alberto Fujimori, three decades ago, turned her from the “daughter of the dictator” into a representative of “freedom and progress” in 2016.

Keiko Fujimori himself was detained for a transplant exam but was later released. Her father ruled between 1990 and 2000 and is serving a 25-year prison sentence for corruption and killing 25 people. She promised to rescue him if she won.

Until recently, Castillo was a country teacher in the third poorest district in the country, deep in the Andes. The son of illiterate peasants entered politics by leading a teachers’ strike. While his stance on nationalizing key sectors of the economy has waned, he remains determined to rewrite the constitution approved under the regime of Fujimori’s father.

Castillo’s supporters include former Bolivian President Evo Morales and former Uruguayan President José Mujica, who asked Castillo in a conversation on Facebook on Thursday not to “lapse into authoritarianism”.

Peru is the second largest copper exporter in the world and mining accounts for nearly 10% of its GDP and 60% of its exports. Castillo’s original proposal to nationalize the country’s mining industry raised alarm bells among business leaders. But regardless of who is chosen to replace President Francisco Sagasti on July 28, investors will remain skeptical.

“A victory for left-wing populist Pedro Castillo in the Peruvian presidential election on Sunday would likely cause local financial markets to tumble, but we doubt investors would have much reason to cheer even if his rival Keiko Fujimori wins,” said Nikhil Sanghani, Emerging A market economist at Capital Economics, wrote in an investor note on Friday.

“Fujimori is a controversial figure who is being investigated on charges of corruption. Given Peru’s recent history, it is not difficult to imagine that this could trigger impeachment proceedings, “he said.

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Garcia Cano reported from Mexico City.

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