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Peruvian left-wing presidential candidate Roberto Sanchez has led a protest in Lima demanding greater transparency in the country’s closely contested runoff election, where he is narrowly trailing conservative rival Keiko Fujimori.
Sanchez, who was joined by hundreds of supporters during Friday night’s march, alleged irregularities after Fujimori’s lead widened to about 43,000 votes with 99.51 per cent of ballots counted.
Figures from the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE) showed Fujimori ahead with 50.11 per cent of the vote, while Sanchez had 49.88 per cent.
During the protest in central Lima, demonstrators called for the protection of the electoral process, chanting that votes should not be bought or manipulated.
“The vote is not for sale! The vote must be defended!” protesters chanted in Lima’s downtown streets.
“The people have chosen Roberto Sanchez, we do not recognise Keiko Fujimori, the people are not going to respect the vote validated by the electoral authorities,” Yuri Guerra, 52, told AFP
Sanchez’s Together for Peru party has also raised concerns over alleged irregularities in the handling of overseas ballots from countries including the United States and Argentina.
However, Peru’s Foreign Ministry rejected claims of vote switching in favour of Fujimori.
Electoral authorities are yet to declare a winner as they review challenges involving more than 120,000 contested votes, a process expected to take at least two weeks.
The June 7 runoff election pitted Fujimori, daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori, against Sanchez, a political ally of former president Pedro Castillo. Both former leaders left office over major controversies.
The winner is expected to assume office on July 28 for a five-year term.
