Elections & Energy Policy Brief

ELECTIONS & ENERGY | La Jolla Conference 30 th Anniversary Policy Brief

8

PERU

Peru, a country that has seen four presidents in three years, has created the standard for elected officials ruling with an extremely low level of popular support—sometimes below 10%. Thus, the expectation for governability may be limited to aspiring for the new president to be able to complete their constitutional mandate. Despite the revolving door at the Pizarro presidential palace, Peru has kept business-friendly policies for a long time, attracting large investments, particularly in the mining and hydrocarbon sectors. Like Ecuador, the first-round election in Peru was characterized by an overcrowded field of 18 candidates. The outcome showed rejection to technocratic market-oriented candidates. In addition, the two second-round candidates represented Peru’s political extremes: Keiko Fujimori—the daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori, congresswoman, and three times presidential candidate—who is aligned with the extreme right and tends to be endorsed by Peru’s urban population and business community. On the other hand, there is Pedro Castillo, who represents the extreme left, a son of poor peasants and himself a farmer, teacher, and union leader. Interestingly, both candidates received modest support in the first round and since then, polls showed stronger support for Castillo and his socially infused discourse of combating excessive poverty and corruption. The June 6 run-off proved to be exceedingly close, and at the time of this writing, Pedro Castillo holds what appears to be an insurmountable lead of about 50,000 votes, though a formal winner has yet to be declared by the Peruvian election authorities. Indeed, since the polls closed, and as votes came in from different jurisdictions, the lead oscillated between Castillo and Fujimori. The continued suspense and lack of clarity is cause for concern, particularly on the heels of major political divisions and chaos in Peru over the last few years. Like in Ecuador, the main challenge for Peru is governance—particularly if Castillo is declared president and implements some of his more radical proposals, like the nationalization of the mining industry and other natural resources, including energy.

ANNIVERSARY POLICY BRIEF | INSITUTE OF THE AMERICAS