Peruvians await results of elections for ninth president in a decade

Article excerpt

Peru held a presidential election to pick its ninth leader in a decade, with results too close to call between two starkly different candidates. Right-wing Keiko Fujimori, daughter of ex-president Alberto Fujimori (convicted of human rights abuses), campaigned on tough-on-crime policies. Her left-wing rival, Roberto Sanchez, an ally of jailed former president Pedro Castillo, promised to bridge Peru's urban-rural socioeconomic divide. The razor-thin margin underscores the country's deep political polarization and instability.