President of Peru Dina Boluarte on Tuesday evening called for new general elections to be held on Sunday, April 12, 2026, to end the “period of instability” in the South American nation.
“Demonstrating our firm commitment to democracy and to the presence here of the authorities that make up the electoral system, I call for general elections on April 12, 2026, so that we can freely and democratically elect our next president,” Boluarte declared in an official address, “as well as the deputies and senators of the future bicameral Congress and representatives to the Andean Parliament.”
“On April 12, 2026, Peruvians will have an appointment with history and we will elect the new authorities in democratic, clean, transparent, and orderly elections,” she continued, adding that her government will commit to maintain “absolute neutrality” so that the results fully reflect the “will of the people.”
Peru underwent a highly convoluted period of political instability between 2016 and 2022 marked by impeachments, arrests, and resignations of five different presidents. Boluarte took office in December 2022 and became Peru’s sixth president in as many years after her predecessor, communist former President Pedro Castillo, was impeached and arrested. Castillo unsuccessfully attempted to stage a coup and dissolve Congress and the judiciary. Boluarte served as Castillo’s first vice president.
Trial proceedings against Castillo, who identifies himself as a “president in captivity,” began in March. Castillo has repeatedly rejected the trial hearings under the premise that “the only crime I committed is to defend this people.” Castillo attempted to leave one of the court hearings in early March. Days later, he staged a four-day “hunger strike” that he suspended on March 18.
In January 2023, a month after Boluarte took office, a series of violent leftist riots in the country calling for the release of Castillo that left roughly 60 dead prompted Boluarte to announce that she would bring forth to Congress a proposal to have the 2026 presidential election rescheduled to sometime in 2023.
After five different proposals to reschedule the election failed to pass in Congress, Boluarte announced in June 2023 that the rescheduling of the election was a “closed” subject and as a result she would serve the remainder of Castillo’s five-year term, which is slated to end on July 28, 2026.
According to Peruvian law, a president is responsible for calling for general elections in the country. Presidents are barred from immediately running for reelection and must wait after one complete term has passed before running again.
The official decree calling for the April 2026 general election states that, in the event that no presidential candidate obtains more than half of the valid votes, a runoff election between the two most voted candidates will take place on Sunday, June 7, 2026.
The upcoming election will also see the return of bicameralism in Congress after operating under a single chamber for 36 years following a reform passed in 2024. One hundred thirty deputies and 60 senators will be elected for a five-year term on April 2026.
“It is our wish that this call marks a path and opens a scenario of distension for our country. Peruvians want an electoral campaign based on proposals that guarantee growth, social justice and development, as well as the continuity of works so that Peru does not come to a standstill and to generate jobs that will especially benefit the most vulnerable citizens,” Boluarte said.
“Likewise, we hope for the good of Peru and of present and future generations that the 2026 elections will not only allow our citizens to exercise their right to vote, but also to put an end to the period of instability that has led Peru to have six presidents in recent years,” she continued.
The Peruvian newspaper La República reported on Wednesday morning that dozens of political parties are expected to participate in the upcoming general elections, including 41 parties presently enrolled to participate in elections, and an additional 32 that presently are in the process of enrolling. In accordance with Boluarte’s announcement, La República explained, parties have up until April 12, 2025 to register and as a result, “not everyone will make it.”
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
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