Fujimori, leftist Sanchez deadlocked in Peru’s presidential poll

Fujimori, Sanchez now tied in Peru’s presidential runoff

Mohan Sinha
29 Apr 2026, 16:42 GMT+10

Amid fraud allegations and a razor-thin battle for second place, right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori is heading for a dead-heat presidential runoff against leftist Roberto Sanche in Peru’s polls.
The slow vote counting has led to fraud claims from ultra-conservative Rafael Lopez Aliaga, who is about 24,000 votes behind Sanchez in the race for second place.
The Organization of American States also supported the election board’s decision to reject calls for extra elections and said the results should be respected.

LIMA, Peru: As Peru's vote count drags on amid fraud allegations and a razor-thin battle for second place, right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori is heading for a dead-heat presidential runoff against leftist Roberto Sanchez.

In the first survey since the April 12 first round, polling firm Ipsos Peru said on April 27 that the daughter of late President Alberto Fujimori would tie with Sanchez at 38 percent each in a June 7 ⁠runoff.

The slow vote counting has led to fraud claims from ultra-conservative Rafael Lopez Aliaga, who is about 24,000 votes behind Sanchez in the race for second place. The gap has been getting bigger in recent days.

Lopez Aliaga has asked that thousands of votes be canceled, claiming they are fraudulent, but European Union observers found no evidence of this.

With 95.8 percent of the votes counted, Fujimori is leading with 17 percent, while Sanchez has 12 percent and Lopez Aliaga has 11.9 percent.

A poll showed that if Fujimori runs against Lopez Aliaga, she would lose by 31 percent to 34 percent.

The Organization of American States also supported the election board's decision to reject calls for extra elections and said the results should be respected.

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