Delays in ballot delivery and other missteps on election day have created frustration among election officials.
Published on 21 April 2026
The head of Peru’s election authority has resigned from his role amid widespread anger over the country’s chaotic general election earlier this month, while vote counting is still underway.
Piero Corvetto said in a social media post on Tuesday that he was stepping down as head of the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE), the government body that organizes elections in Peru.
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In a letter to the National Board of Justice (JNJ), Corvetto denied that irregularities had occurred, as some politicians have alleged.
But he made clear he was visiting to boost public confidence ahead of a possible second round of voting in the presidential race on June 7.
The first round of elections, held on April 12, was marred by logistical issues, forcing voting hours to be extended in the capital Lima and elsewhere.
Election observers have acknowledged missteps in the electoral process but cautioned that there is no strong evidence of fraud.
Peru’s National Electoral Jury (JNE) said the voting results would be finalized before May 15, with the top two presidential candidates advancing to the final round.
Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori is ahead with about 17 percent of the vote and is likely to advance to the run-off.
But who will face him remains a mystery. Leftist congressman Roberto Sánchez and former far-right Lima mayor Rafael López Aliaga are nearly tied, with 12 percent and 11.9 percent, respectively.
The engagement of the first round of voting at a time of prolonged instability and declining trust in government institutions could deepen dissatisfaction with the country’s political system.
Even before the April election, about 68 percent of Peruvians said they had little or no confidence in the country’s election officials, according to a survey conducted by the Institute for Peruvian Studies (IEP) and the Instituto Bartolome de las Casas (IBC).
Some presidential candidates, including López Aliaga, have advanced unconfirmed claims of fraud and called for the first round of voting to be cancelled.
Election officials have begun reviewing thousands of disputed ballots that were challenged because of discrepancies, missing details or tally sheet errors.
