Peru's Fujimori, leftist Sanchez deadlocked in presidential runoff poll


FILE PHOTO: Peru's presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori delivers a statement as the vote count in the country's general election continues for a fourth day, in Lima, Peru April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Stifs Paucca/File Photo

LIMA, April 26 (Reuters) - ⁠Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori is heading for a ⁠dead-heat presidential runoff against leftist Roberto Sanchez, a ‌new poll showed on Sunday, as Peru's vote count drags on amid fraud allegations and a razor-thin battle for second place.

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

• The ⁠slow count has sparked fraud allegations from ​ultra-conservative Rafael ‌Lopez Aliaga, who trails Sanchez by about 24,000 ⁠votes in ​the fight for second place - a gap that has widened in recent days.

• Lopez Aliaga has demanded thousands of ⁠votes be annulled as fraudulent, but ​European Union observers said they found no evidence to support the claims.

• With 95.8% of votes counted, Fujimori ⁠leads with 17%, while Sanchez has 12% and Lopez Aliaga 11.9%.

• If Fujimori faces Lopez Aliaga instead, she would lose 31%-34%, the poll showed.

• The Organization ​of American States on Friday ⁠backed the electoral board's rejection of demands for supplementary ​elections, and called for "unrestricted respect for ‌the popular will."

• Sanchez served ​as a minister under jailed former President Pedro Castillo.

(Reporting by Marco AquinoEditing by Bill Berkrot)

Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for breaking news alerts and key updates!

Others Also Read