Peru’s Ex-President Recognizes Castillo as President-Elect

On Monday, Peru’s ex-President Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) stated that the proclamation of Peru Libre (PL) candidate Pedro Castillo as president-elect could not delay any longer.

RELATED: 

Peruvian JNE Turns Down 10 More Appeals From Fuerza Popular

Humala stressed that the official results of Peru’s June 6 elections point to Castillo as the next president and that sowing doubts about this process is not democratic.

Leftist teacher Castillo reached 50.12 percent of the valid votes ahead of the Fuerza Popular (FP) candidate Keiko Fujimori, who gained 49.87 ballots. However, the National Elections Jury (JNE) has yet to resolve a series of requests for annulment presented by FP, before proceeding with the proclamation of a President-elect.

Meanwhile, Castillo has expressed that he awaits the official results. “There are neither losers nor winners, today we are one family", the PL candidate stated.  

The European Union office in Peru considered that the electoral process was free and democratic. However, Fujimori's party, which has made allegations of fraud with little evidence, insists and has filed hundreds of appeals involving at least 200,000 votes.

So far, the JNE has received 1,088 requests in the first instance to annul polling stations, although of that total only 281 were presented within the legal term.

The elections have deeply divided Peruvians and almost every day there are marches in downtown Lima, with supporters of Castillo and Fujimori demanding speed in the process and respect for the popular vote.