The election result in Peru has been delayed after electoral authorities began reviewing thousands of disputed ballots from the April 12 general election.
Officials say the final result is now likely to be pushed into May as the counting process slows down due to challenges over voting records and tally sheet errors.
The National Office of Electoral Processes reported that around 6% of polling stations—representing more than one million votes—have been disputed. These votes are now being reviewed by the National Jury of Elections in public hearings.
So far, about 94% of votes have been counted. Conservative candidate Keiko Fujimori remains in the lead with around 17% of the vote, but the race for second place is extremely tight.
Left-wing candidate Roberto Sánchez and right-wing rival Rafael López Aliaga are separated by only a very small margin, with just a few thousand votes between them.
Most of the disputed ballots come from rural areas outside the capital Lima, which could play a key role in deciding who advances to face Fujimori in the June 7 runoff election.
The delay has created political tension, with some candidates questioning the process. However, election officials insist the issues are due to administrative errors, not fraud.
Observers from the European Union Election Observation Mission have said they found no evidence of any voting fraud during the election.
Officials expect the final presidential result to be confirmed by mid-May once all disputed ballots are resolved.
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