Divided Peru set for tough election

Former Pte. Alan Garcia

Alan Garcia, Peru’s controversial former president, looks almost certain to face Ollanta Humala, the radical nationalist, in a presidential run-off election.

The official count of votes cast in the first round on April 9 has been slow but by Sunday, with more than 97 per cent of the ballots tallied, Mr Humala had 30.75 per cent and Mr Garcia 24.34 per cent. Lourdes Flores, the most market-friendly candidate, trailed in third place with 23.62 per cent.

The results set up a contest between one of Peru’s most experienced political campaigners and a fiery political neophyte. Pre-election polls showed the electorate divided in the event of a Humala-García contest. “It will be a tight race,” said Luis Benavente, a pollster at the University of Lima.

Mr Humala enjoys strong support in the south, while Mr Garcia is popular in the traditional strongholds of his Apra party in the north.

The main battleground for the second round will be Lima. The capital, with more than a third of the country’s votes, was a rich source of support for Ms Flores.

Mr Humala will seek to play on his status as an “outsider” in a country in which the institutions of government are held in low regard. In Mr Garcia he will have an easy target: the Apra leader’s 1985-1990 presidency was marked by economic chaos and a guerrilla campaign by Shining Path rebels.

Mr Garcia is more likely to pick up support from middle-class voters scared by Mr Humala’s populist rhetoric.