Peruvian general election, 2006
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General elections were held in Peru in on 9 April 2006 to elect the President, two Vice-Presidents, 120 members of Congress and five members of the
Andean Parliament The Andean Parliament is the governing and deliberative body of the Andean Community. It was created on October 25, 1979, in La Paz (Bolivia), through the Constitutive Treaty signed by the chancellors of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venez ...
for the 2006–2011 period. As the no presidential candidate received a majority of the vote, a second round was held on 4 June between the top two candidates, Ollanta Humala and Alan García. Garcia won the run-off with 52.63% to Humala's 47.37%. He was subsequently inaugurated on 28 July 2006, Peruvian Independence Day.


Electoral system

The 120 members of Congress were elected from 25 constituencies based on the 24
departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
and the
Constitutional Province of Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists of the whole Call ...
). The number of seats in Congress for each district was determined by its number of eligible voters. A political party need to win a minimum of five seats in two electoral districts or 4% of nationwide valid votes in order to be represented in Congress. A minimum of 4% of nationwide valid votes was necessary for a party to win seats in the Andean Parliament.


Candidates


Presidential tickets


Congress

24 parties presented up to 130 candidates to Congress each, for a total of 2,918 candidates. 331 of these were rejected by the National Jury of Elections, leaving 2,587 candidates. These represent all parties with presidential candidates, plus Possible Peru, Independent Moralizing Front, Project Country, and
Agricultural People's Front of Peru The Agricultural People's Front of Peru ( es, Frente Popular Agrícola del Perú; FREPAP) is an agrarian political party in Peru, founded in 1989 by Ezequiel Ataucusi Gamonal. The party had 42,083 members in 2020. History Ezequiel Ataucusi G ...
(''Frente Popular Agrícola del Perú'', FREPAP). Sí Cumple did not register any candidates. The table below shows the breakdown of candidates by Electoral District. Votes by 457,891 Peruvians residing abroad were counted in the Lima Electoral District (the number of voters in the table includes them).


Andean Parliament

A total of 21 parties nominated 15 candidates for the Andean Parliament each, for a total of 315 candidates. 73 candidates were rejected by the National Jury of Elections, leaving 242 candidates from 19 parties. Participating parties include all those with Congressional candidates, except And It's Called Peru, Decentralization Coalition, Democratic Force, FREPAP and Let's Make Progress Peru.


Campaign


Main presidential candidates

* Lourdes Flores is the leader of the conservative, right-wing
National Unity Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...
coalition. She is a former Congresswoman and came in third place in the 2001 presidential election. She was often targeted as the candidate of the rich and was accused by opponents of not caring about the poor. Her running mate was
Arturo Woodman Arturo Woodman Pollit (born October 16, 1931 in Piura) is a Peruvian engineer and politician. He was National Unity's candidate for First Vice President of the 2006 general election, as the running mate of Lourdes Flores Nano. The ticket pla ...
, a well-known entrepreneur, who also led the organization of the
2004 Copa América The 2004 Copa América was the 41st edition of the Copa América, the South-American championship for international association football teams. The competition was organized by CONMEBOL, South America's football governing body, and was held in P ...
and the 2005 U-17 World Championship. * Alan García is the leader of left-leaning Peruvian Aprista Party and was President of Peru from 1985 to 1990. His presidency was marked by hyperinflation and an economic crisis, as well as widespread terrorist activities and isolation from the international community; however, he came in second place in the 2001 presidential election, losing in the runoff against Alejandro Toledo. Critics often pointed to his administration as a failure to be repeated if he got elected. * Ollanta Humala is the leader of the left-wing Peruvian Nationalist Party, but ran under the
Union for Peru Union for Peru ( es, Unión por el Perú) was a Peruvian political party founded by Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, an ex- UN Secretary General, in 1994 to run for the Presidency of Peru in the 1995 general elections. Originally a social democratic pa ...
banner. He is a Lieutenant Colonel (retired) and led an uprising in October 2000 against then President Alberto Fujimori, for which he was pardoned by Congress following Fujimori's fall in November. He spoke of the "refoundation" of the country in a "Second Republic" and called for the rewriting of the Constitution by a Constituent Assembly. Opponents criticized his lack of political experience, his perceived authoritarianism and populism. He was constantly associated during the campaign with his brothers
Ulises Ulises is a Spanish language, Spanish-language given name. It is the Spanish form of the English name Ulysses (given name), Ulysses, which itself derives from a Latin form of Odysseus (a legendary Greek king). People with the name * Ulises Adame de ...
and Antauro, though their '' etnocacerista movement'' is more radical than his nationalist movement. Ulises also ran for President in this election with Avanza País; Antauro, who participated in the 2000 insurrection, is in prison, following his own brief rebellion in January 2005 against President Alejandro Toledo, but also ran for Congress under the Avanza País.


Other candidates

*
Martha Chávez Martha Gladys Chávez Cossío de Ocampo (born 12 January 1953) is a Peruvian Fujimorist politician and lawyer. A historical and a prominent figure of Fujimorism, she has served in Congress for six-non consecutive terms from 1995 to 2006 and from ...
was the candidate of the pro-
Fujimorist Fujimorism () denotes the policies and the political ideology of former President of Peru Alberto Fujimori as well as the personality cult built around him, his policies and his family. The ideology is defined by authoritarianism, its support for ...
Alliance for the Future. She is currently a Congresswoman and was the first female President of Congress. A staunch defender of the former president, she was suspended from Congress in 2002 after corruption accusations, but was reinstated in 2005. Running mate
Santiago Fujimori Santiago Fujimori Inomoto (born 3 December 1946) is a Peruvian lawyer, politician and a former congressman, representing Lima for the 2006–2011 term. Fujimori is of Japanese descent. He is the younger brother of former President Alberto Fujimor ...
is Alberto's younger brother. As with all of the ''fujimoristas'', she was criticized for defending an administration that is seen as corrupt and authoritarian. * Valentín Paniagua was the leader of the
Center Front The Centre Front (Spanish: ''Frente de Centro,'' FC), was a Peruvian political coalition formed by the parties Acción Popular (AP), Somos Perú (PDSP) and Coordinadora Nacional de Independientes (CNI) for the 2006 national election. Its leade ...
, a coalition of centrist parties formed for this election. He was President of Congress before becoming the interim President of Peru (November 2000-July 2001), following the collapse of Fujimori's administration. Running mate
Alberto Andrade Alberto Manuel Andrade Carmona (December 24, 1943 – June 19, 2009) was a Peruvian lawyer and politician, born in Lima who served as the Mayor of Lima from 1996 to 2002 and as a Congressman from 2006 until his death. Education He studied at ...
was mayor of Lima from 1996 to 2002. *
Natale Amprimo Natale Juan Amprimo Pla is a Peruvian politician. He was a Member of Congress for the period 2001–2006. He left We Are Peru, former Mayor of Lima Alberto Andrade's party, in 2004. He was Alianza para el Progreso's presidential candidate for the ...
( Alliance for Progress),
Javier Diez Canseco Javier Diez Canseco Cisneros (March 24, 1948 – May 4, 2013) was a Peruvian politician and member of the Peruvian Congress representing the Socialist Party of Peru (PS), of which he was a founding member and also served as its Party President ...
( Partido Socialista) and
Luis Guerrero Luis Bernardo Guerrero Figueroa (born August 20, 1953) is a Peruvian politician. He was a Member of Congress for two periods 2000- 2001 and 2001–2006; and was Perú Ahora's presidential candidate for the 2006 national election. He was also May ...
(Perú Ahora) are current Members of Congress. Guerrero was also mayor of
Cajamarca Cajamarca (), also known by the Quechua name, ''Kashamarka'', is the capital and largest city of the Cajamarca Region as well as an important cultural and commercial center in the northern Andes. It is located in the northern highlands of Peru ...
. *
Alberto Borea Alberto Borea Odría is a Peruvian lawyer and politician. He was Fuerza Democrática's presidential candidate for the 2006 national election. He was Deputy from 1985 to 1990 and Senator from 1990 to 1992, when Alberto Fujimori dissolved the pa ...
(Democratic Force) is a former Deputy and Senator. In 1992, he participated in a failed coup against Fujimori, led by Jaime Salinas Sedó, whose son was National Justice's candidate in this election,
Jaime Salinas Jaime Salinas López-Torres (born March 8, 1963, in Lima, Peru) is a Peruvian politician, son of General Jaime Salinas Sedó. He was Justicia Nacional's presidential candidate for the 2006 national election. He received 0.535% of the vote, com ...
. *
Humberto Lay Sun Pastor Humberto Lay Sun (Chinese: 黎孙 ''Lí Sūn''; born 25 September 1934) is a Peruvian evangelical minister of the Iglesia Biblica Emmanuel, an architect, and a politician belonging to the National Restoration Party. He is of Chinese desce ...
(National Restoration) is an evangelical pastor and was a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, established to study the atrocities committed in the 1980s and 1990s. Running mate
Máximo San Román Máximo San Román Cáceres (born 14 April 1946) is a Peruvian mechanical engineer, businessman and former politician. He was President of Peru between 1992 and 1993, a term that was marked by the authoritarian government of Alberto Fujimori. Co ...
was Fujimori's Vice-President, but split with him after the 1992 self-coup. *
Susana Villarán Susana María del Carmen Villarán de la Puente is a centre-left politician in Peru, a former presidential candidate, and in municipal elections in 2010 became the first woman to be elected Mayor of Lima. She is vice president of the Decentralis ...
(Decentralization Coalition) was Minister of Women's Promotion and Social Development during Paniagua's tenure. * Alberto Fujimori's candidacy was rejected after a ban by Congress forbidding him to hold office until 2011 was upheld. *Ruling party Possible Peru and ally Independent Moralizing Front (FIM) withdrew their candidates. PP's candidate Rafael Belaúnde was not a party member and clashed with the party's core over the congressional candidate list, which included some people he did not approve of. FIM's leader Fernando Olivera, quit to run for Congress, realizing his slim chances in the presidential race.


Presidential debate

The only official presidential debate was held on May 21, 2006 between Ollanta Humala and Alan García, with journalist
Augusto Álvarez Rodrich Augusto Aníbal Álvarez Rodrich (born 12 October 1959) is a Peruvian economist and journalist who works in print, radio and television. Early life and education Rodrich was born in Lima, Peru. He earned a bachelor's degree in economics at th ...
as moderator, in the National Museum of Archaeology. There were no debates before the First Round. Humala arrived late, so García started the debate on his own, claiming that his opponent had "stopped at a bar for a sandwich" and accusing him of having "no respect for the country". Humala accused ''Aprista'' supporters of delaying his arrival. Álvarez Rodrich asked Humala to remove a small Peruvian flag on his podium before his first intervention, in order to have equitative images for both contenders. The candidate refused, saying that the national symbol was nothing to be ashamed about and arguing that the debate arrangements did not forbid using it, leading the moderator to withdraw the flag himself. The Union for Peru candidate attacked García's position on a bilateral free trade agreement with the United States as "ambiguous"; said that
Vladimiro Montesinos Vladimiro Lenin Ilich Montesinos Torres (born 20 May 1945) is a former long-standing head of Peru's intelligence service, National Intelligence Service (SIN), under President Alberto Fujimori. In the year 2000, the infamous "Vladi-videos" came ...
would evidently vote for his opponent (since the former intelligence chief had recently claimed that Humala's uprising in 2001 had been staged as a distraction for his escape from the country); reminded the audience of a tape showing Montesinos bribing former Peruvian Aprista Party Secretary-General
Agustín Mantilla Máximo Agustín Mantilla Campos (December 10, 1944 – November 20, 2015) was a Peruvian economist, sociologist and politician. Considered by analysts as one of the most powerful political figures in Alan García's first administration, he ...
; alluded to a
paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...
group that operated during García's presidency; promised not to receive his salary if he got elected, but only his payments as a retired Lieutenant Colonel; proposed the formation of a Constituent Assembly to rewrite the Constitution on the basis of its 1979 version; and suggested the possibility of reopening a penitentiary, where corrupt government officials and "ex-presidents" would be sent, in a tacit attack at García. García called Humala a "demagogue" for promising to lower fuel prices by 30 percent; reminded his opponent of his earnings as a
military attaché A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission, often an embassy. This type of attaché post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer, who retains a commission while serving with an embassy. Opport ...
in France and South Korea; called on Humala for asking García to clarify whether he would free Montesinos or not, saying that such decision would concern the Judiciary branch anyway and that pretending to take such powers would be undemocratic, "in the style of (Hugo) Chávez"; indirectly pointed to Humala's support of his brother Antauro's 2005 rebellion, leading to the death of four policemen; and promised to enforce the payment of extra hours, stop arbitrary employment terminations and change some aspects of pension systems. The media and political analysts described the debate mostly as "boring" and centered on personal attacks, with García not delivering a decisive victory, despite his much greater political experience

Opinion polls in Lima Metropolitan Area, Metropolitan Lima and
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists o ...
gave García a clear victory over Humala, though these were anti-Humala strongholds throughout the campaign

A debate between the technical teams of both candidates was held on May 28 in the Museum of the Nation.


Highlights

* Important issues during the campaign included economic policy, unemployment, education, healthcare, drug trafficking, terrorist activities, the exploitation of the Camisea Gas Project, Camisea natural gas reserves, the management of ports by foreign companies, a maritime border dispute with Chile, birth control and abortion, and renewal of Congress. * In January 2006, Ollanta Humala attended a ceremony held in honor of then President-Elect of
Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
, Evo Morales, by Venezuelan President
Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Republ ...
, who publicly endorsed Humala

Chávez also called Lourdes Flores "the candidate of the Peruvian oligarchy"

These events prompted a row between Chávez and the Peruvian government, who accused him of interfering in Peru's internal affairs. Humala later met with Brazilian and
Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
presidents Lula da Silva and Néstor Kirchner. The former had also invited Flores and García, but they declined. *In late April, after Chávez announced that Venezuela would leave the
Andean Community The Andean Community ( es, Comunidad Andina, CAN) is a free trade area with the objective of creating a customs union comprising the South American countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. The trade bloc was called the Andean Pact un ...
unless
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, Ecuador and Peru abandoned their plans for Free Trade Agreements with the United States, Alan García criticized him, arguing that this was equivalent to blackmail, and that it was very hypocritical, considering the amounts of oil exports from Venezuela to the US. Chávez responded by calling García "corrupt" and a "thief", and the new candidate of Peru's rich and of the US, following Flores' defeat. He also endorsed Humala again and threatened to withdraw his ambassador to Peru if García won. After accusations by García and the Peruvian government of interference in the election by the Venezuelan president, Toledo and García were called " caimans from the same well" and the former was labelled as US President
Bush Bush commonly refers to: * Shrub, a small or medium woody plant Bush, Bushes, or the bush may also refer to: People * Bush (surname), including any of several people with that name **Bush family, a prominent American family that includes: *** ...
's "puppet" and "office boy" by Chávez. This led to the mutual withdrawal of ambassadors

García had been the notable exception to criticism of Humala's January meeting with Chávez, in an apparent move to avoid confrontation with the latter, who could be a leftist ally in the region during his potential presidency. * On May 25, a violent clash between supporters of Ollanta Humala and Alan García in
Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...
left five injured people, including two (three by other accounts) wounded by gunshot

* National Unity was accused of buying off candidates to pull out of the race, including Fernando Olivera, who did withdraw, and Jaime Salinas. Olivera's FIM party later showed TV advertisements directly attacking Alan García, and was ordered to stop by the National Jury of Elections. The ruling was not obeyed and
Jorge Del Castillo Jorge Alfonso Alejandro Del Castillo Gálvez (born 2 July 1950) is a Peruvian lawyer and politician. In his career, he has served in the now abolished Peruvian Chamber of Deputies between 1990 and 1992, in the unicameral Congress of the Republi ...
, Secretary General of Peruvian Aprista Party and Member of Congress, showed documents allegedly proving a secret pact between FIM and Lourdes Flores' Unidad Nacional party accounting for the attacks on García. In response, Olivera sued him for forging the documents

* A section of National Unity accused the Peruvian Aprista Party of electoral fraud, following the narrow victory of Alan García over Lourdes Flores in the race for the second runoff spot

* On April 7, just two days before the First Round,
José Cardó Guarderas José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernac ...
(Democratic Reconstruction) and Ciro Gálvez (Andean Renaissance) dropped from the presidential race and announced their support for Lourdes Flores' candidacy and their opposition to Ollanta Humala's. Only Cardó presented his official resignation to the National Jury of Elections, but his votes were still counted officially. The day before,
Ricardo Wong Ricardo Wong Kuoman (Chinese: 王国曼 ''Wáng guó màn'') is a Peruvian politician. He is of Chinese Peruvian background. He was the And It's Called Peru's presidential candidate who unsuccessfully ran in the 2006 national election. He announc ...
(And It's Called Peru), who had withdrawn his candidacy before and later retracted, announced that he dropped the race in favor of Alan García. Given the proximity of the election, there were no changes to the ballot

* In the second round campaigning for the Peruvian elections Diego Maradona the Argentinian soccer star, announced that he would visit Peru on May 4 to play a friendly game with former Peruvian soccer players. Maradona has also expressed his support for Humala's campaign and is a personal friend of Cuban President
Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
and Venezuelan President
Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Republ ...
. In response to the announcement that Maradona was coming to Peru to support Humala the candidate for the APRA party Alan García was quoted as saying "Maradona comes by order from his friends in Cuba and Venezuela and even so Ollanta Humala will not manage to pull a goal on us". In the end, Maradona did not make any political statements after all

* Ollanta Humala was accused of torturing and killing peasants under the ''nom de guerre'' "Capitán Carlos" when he was the commander of a military base in the jungle from 1992 to 1993. National Unity was accused of buying off witnesses to testify against him. His brother Antauro confirmed that he used that name and said that he acted "according to the rules of the Army"

* In December 2005, Peru reached a deal with the United States on a Peru-United States Free Trade Agreement, Free Trade Agreement between the two countries. Some candidates, such as Ollanta Humala, opposed the agreement, others like Lourdes Flores supported it, and still others like Alan García approved parts of it and advocated revising it. The Toledo administration announced that it would be signed after the First Round in order to avoid affecting the election's outcom

The agreement was finally signed on April 12 in Washington, D.C., and ratified by Peru's Congress on June 28, but must be ratified by the U.S. Congress before coming into force. *
Isaac Humala Isaac Humala Núñez (born 1931) is a labour lawyer from Ayacucho and the ideological leader of the '' Movimiento Etnocacerista'', a group of ethnic nationalists in Peru. He is a former communist leader who served as the model for a colourful ...
, father of candidates Ollanta and Ulises, said that he would free Shining Path and MRTA leaders
Abimael Guzmán Manuel Rubén Abimael Guzmán Reynoso (; 3 December 1934 − 11 September 2021), also known by his '' nom de guerre'' Chairman Gonzalo ( es, Presidente Gonzalo), was a Peruvian Maoist revolutionary and guerrilla leader, considered a terrorist ...
and Víctor Polay, since he considered that terrorist movements no longer represent a threat to Peruvian society. This came after a letter was signed by several public figures, including Ulises and fellow candidates Javier Diez Canseco and
Alberto Moreno Alberto Moreno Pérez (; born 5 July 1992) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a left-back for La Liga club Villarreal. An academy graduate of local side Sevilla, he made his senior debut for the club's reserve side in 2011 befo ...
, demanding a fair trial for Polay. Most candidates rushed to condemn Isaac Humala's comments, including Ollanta and even Ulises, whose candidacy had been openly supported by his father

Around the same time, Elena Humala, the candidates' mother, claimed that homosexuals and rapists should be sho

which apparently prompted Ollanta to ask his parents to stop making public statements. * In an April 4 interview with Argentine newspaper Página/12, Ollanta Humala claimed that, if Lourdes Flores were elected, she would be overthrown in less than a year

Given his past uprising, this was interpreted as a coup threat, leading opponents to accuse him again of having no respect for democracy. * Peru's only living Roman Catholic Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal,
Juan Luis Cipriani Juan Luis Cipriani Thorne (born 28 December 1943) is a Peruvian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Lima from 1999 to 2019. He has been a bishop since 1988 and was made a cardinal in 2001. Early life and career Cipriani atte ...
exhorted the electorate not to fall for "messianic" candidates, in one of several tacit references to Ollanta Humala

* Minister of Justice Alejandro Tudela Chipotea announced that Antauro and Ollanta Humala would be sued for complicity with
Vladimiro Montesinos Vladimiro Lenin Ilich Montesinos Torres (born 20 May 1945) is a former long-standing head of Peru's intelligence service, National Intelligence Service (SIN), under President Alberto Fujimori. In the year 2000, the infamous "Vladi-videos" came ...
. While their October 2000 uprising was publicized as an insurrection against the Fujimori administration, there have been accusations of it being staged in order to create a distraction so that the fugitive Montesinos could flee the country, which he did the same day aboard a yacht. César Mojovich, a former National Police Commissioner of Toquepala, revealed this in a TV show, and apparently there are records of calls from Montesinos to the Humala brothers' military base just hours before the uprising

In mid-May 2006, Montesinos himself claimed that Humala's uprising was indeed a farce, though his statements were interpreted by some as an attempt to affect the outcome of the runoff election

* Union for Peru's vice-presidential candidate Carlos Alberto Torres Caro, Carlos Torres Caro was accused of sexual harassment by two of his former students, and of electoral fraud cover-up in 1995

The presidential candidate for Project Country,
Marco Antonio Arrunátegui Marco may refer to: People * Marco (given name), people with the given name Marco * Marco (actor) (born 1977), South Korean model and actor * Georg Marco (1863–1923), Romanian chess player of German origin * Tomás Marco (born 1942), Spanish ...
, who withdrew from the race, had a pending judicial process for sexual exploitation of minors

* The National Electoral Jury admitted the failure of an Electoral Ethical Pact between the parties, given the widespread personal attacks between the candidates. Asociación Civil Transparencia, an unaffiliated citizen group, also lamented the overall tone of the campaign

* Organization of American States, OAS and European Parliament observers denied the possibility of an electoral fraud

which was suggested by Ollanta Humala, who accused the government of favoring Lourdes Flores in the First Round. The OAS mission sent personnel to emergency zones in Peru, where remnants of Shining Path (''Sendero Luminoso'') were known to operate. SL called for a boycott of the election

* The election was initially going to use two separate ballots, by decision of the National Office of Electoral Processes: one for the Presidential election, the other for the Congressional and Andean Parliament elections. After the formal protest of several parties, the National Jury of Elections ruled that the ballots had to be merged into one

* Members of the Military of Peru, Armed Forces and the National Police were able to vote for the first time in 180 years. Up to 50% were eligible to vote, with an estimated 35% actually voting


Opinion polls


Results


President


Congress

Union for Peru obtained 45 out of 120 seats in Congress, more than any other party, but still shy of an absolute majority, despite victories in 16 of 25 Electoral Districts. The Peruvian Aprista Party got the most votes in six Districts and took 36 seats. National Unity obtained 17 seats and a local victory in Lima; Alliance for the Future took 13 seats and won in Pasco; Center Front got 5 seats; ruling party Possible Peru only got 2, after being the stronger party in the 2001-2006 period; and National Restoration took the remaining 2 seats, as well as most votes in Madre de Dios Region, Madre de Dios. The latter two obtained barely above the minimum 4% of valid votes nationwide for Congress representation. The strongholds for the three main parties were essentially the same as in the presidential election: the southern Andes for Union for Peru, the northern-central coast for the Peruvian Aprista Party, and Lima (plus voters abroad, which counted as part of this Electoral District) for National Unity. Former President Alberto Fujimori's daughter Keiko, of Alliance for the Future, obtained 602,869 votes, the highest individual voting nationwide (though it should be taken into account that she ran in Lima, the Electoral District with, by far, the largest electorate). She was followed by
Carlos Bruce Carlos Ricardo Bruce Montes de Oca (born 24 February 1957) is a Peruvian politician and a former Congressman, representing Lima from 2006 until 2019, when his term ended with the dissolution of the Congress by Martín Vizcarra in 2019. Early l ...
of Possible Peru, a former Minister of Housing, Construction and Sanitation, with 193,374. The most voted candidate of the party with the most votes presides over the preparatory board for the installation of the new Congress. However, this corresponded to
Carlos Torres Caro Carlos Alberto Torres Caro (born 14 September 1963) is a Peruvian lawyer and politician and a former Congressman representing Lima for the 2006–2011 term. Biography He was born in the province of Casma, department of Ancash, on Septembe ...
, Union for Peru's candidate for Second Vice-President, who, along with
Gustavo Espinoza Gustavo Espinoza Roman is a Peruvian politician and a former Congressman representing Lambayeque for the 2006–2011 term. Espinoza was originally elected to Congress, as a member of the Union for Peru party, but left it after the election due t ...
and Rocío González resigned from the party following the Second Round, arguing that Humala's approach to their role as an opposition party was too violent. The three incoming Members of Congress presented the new
Peruvian Democratic Party The Peruvian Democratic Party (Spanish: ''Partido Demócrata Peruano'', PDP) is a Peruvian political party founded on 26 June 2006 by former Union for Peru (UPP) members following differences within the party. Elected Congress members Carlos T ...
on 26 June

Center Front, Possible Peru and National Restoration agreed to formally create a joint group in Congress with their 9 members, under the name of the first party

This new group was the only one without representation in the multi-partisan Directive Board of the new Congress, led by the Peruvian Aprista Party's
Mercedes Cabanillas Mercedes Cabanillas Bustamante (born May 22, 1947) is a Peruvian educator and politician. A prominent member of the Peruvian Aprista Party, she served as Minister of Education in the first presidency of Alan García, making her the first woman to ...
as president.


By region


Andean Parliament

Only the three main parties obtained representation in the Andean Parliament, with Union for Peru and the Peruvian Aprista Party obtaining 2 seats (plus 4 substitutes) each, and National Unity getting one seat (and two substitutes). Union for Peru got the most votes, with 24.0% of the valid ballots. Congressman
Rafael Rey Rafael Rey Rey (born February 26, 1954) is a Peruvian engineer, political commentator and politician who currently serves as member of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru Board of Directors since 2016. Throughout his political life, he served in the ...
of National Unity obtained the most individual votes, with 611,638, after which he announced his own and his party National Renewal's departure from the coalition.


External links


Election Guide: Peru
''
IFES The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is an international, non-profit organization founded in 1987. Based in Arlington, Virginia, the organization provides assistance and support for elections and electoral stakeholders in ne ...
Election Guide''
Video of Garcia-Humala Presidential Debate
''
Peruvian National Television Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century; Peruvian ...
''
"Background Q&A: Peru's Elections"
March 10, 2006 ''Council on Foreign Relations''
"Peruvian Elections"
June 1, 2006 ''Council on Hemispheric Affairs''
National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE)
{{Peruvian elections Elections in Peru Peru
National election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
Presidential elections in Peru April 2006 events in South America