Peru Election 2025: Vote Count Delays Spark Calls to Remove Electoral Chief

Pressure is mounting on Peru's electoral authority amid a slow and controversial vote count following the April 12 presidential election. Piero Corvetto, head of the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE), is facing widespread calls to resign after complaints of logistical failures, counting errors, and alleged irregularities rattled investor confidence and deepened political uncertainty.

With 93.3% of ballots tallied, conservative frontrunner Keiko Fujimori leads with 17% of the vote and appears on track for a June runoff. The race for second place remains extremely tight, with leftist Roberto Sanchez holding 12.0% and ultraconservative former Lima mayor Rafael Lopez Aliaga at 11.9% — a gap of roughly 13,000 votes. Final results may take up to two weeks, according to local election-monitoring group Transparencia.

Approximately 5% of ballots were flagged for review due to missing data or polling station record errors. These will undergo scrutiny by a special electoral jury before being added to the official count. Corvetto acknowledged that logistical issues forced voting to be extended by one day, primarily in Lima, though he denied any fraud occurred. Despite his defense, Peru's top electoral court filed a criminal complaint against him, citing potential violations of voting rights. A separate police investigation was launched after election materials were discovered on a public road in Lima, though ONPE confirmed those votes had already been recorded.

Business leaders and politicians across party lines are calling for Corvetto's removal before the second round. Meanwhile, European Union election observers stated they found no evidence of fraud.

Sanchez's second-place position had briefly alarmed markets given his proposals to rewrite the constitution and expand state control over natural resources. Those concerns eased somewhat as projections indicated Peru's incoming Congress would lean conservative, reducing the likelihood of sweeping economic reforms. The Peruvian sol held steady while Lima's stock index edged up 0.4%.