Keiko Fujimori edges ahead of Roberto Sánchez in Peru's presidential runoff with 98% of votes counted

A lead measured in hundreds of votes

With 98.2% of polling station records processed, Keiko Fujimori of the right-wing Fuerza Popular party held 50.001% of valid votes to Roberto Sánchez's 49.999%, according to Peru's National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE). The margin stood at roughly 400 to 650 votes, depending on the source, out of more than 18 million ballots cast. Fujimori had initially led on election night, Sunday 7 June, before Sánchez overtook her on Monday by as many as 42,000 votes. The trend reversed again on Wednesday as ballots from Peruvians abroad — particularly in the United States and Japan — began arriving and favoured Fujimori.

“We are going to wait for the official figures, but without a doubt, as the count increases, especially from the records coming from abroad, it gives us a lot, a lot of encouragement.”

The votes still in play

Roughly 1.76% of polling station records, representing around 400,000 to 480,000 votes, have been flagged for judicial review by special electoral juries. Most of these contested records come from metropolitan Lima and overseas districts, both strongholds for Fujimori. The electoral authority has indicated the final count could take between two weeks and a month, with the National Elections Jury (JNE) estimating a definitive result around 7 July. The winner will succeed interim president José María Balcázar on 28 July for a five-year term.

Sánchez cries foul as protests erupt

As Fujimori regained the lead, Sánchez denounced what he called "manoeuvres and wills to twist democracy," pointing to a sector of the press he accused of attacking him. Supporters of Juntos por el Perú protested outside the JNE offices in central Lima on Tuesday, chanting that the vote must be defended "at the ballot box and in the streets." Police dispersed the crowd with water cannons. Sánchez described the demonstration as a constitutional right and did not rule out calling for further peaceful marches.

“Electoral results must be respected, regardless of wishes or not.”

A fourth attempt for Fujimori

This is Keiko Fujimori's fourth presidential bid. She lost runoffs in 2011, 2016, and 2021 — the last two by margins of roughly 40,000 votes to Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and Pedro Castillo, respectively. Her father, former president Alberto Fujimori (1990–2000), governed for a decade before resigning by fax from Japan amid corruption scandals. Sánchez, 57, ran as the political heir to Castillo, who has been imprisoned since his failed self-coup in 2022. A victory for Fujimori would return the fujimorismo movement to power after 26 years.

A familiar waiting game

Slow vote counts are standard in Peru. The final result of the 2021 runoff between Castillo and Fujimori took six weeks to certify. The first round of this year's election, held on 12 April, was also announced more than a month later. A European Union observation mission described the second round as having taken place in a "calm and orderly" manner, despite a polarised campaign. More than 27 million Peruvians, including 1.2 million living abroad, were eligible to vote on Sunday.