This Sunday, voters in Peru will elect a new president. The choice they face is between Keiko Fujimori, a center-right candidate and the daughter of disgraced former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori, and Pedro Castillo, a schoolteacher and union leader.
To say that neither candidate is perfect is an understatement.
But only one candidate, Castillo, has openly expressed fondness for Vladimir Lenin and has openly associated with members of MOVADEF (Movement for Amnesty and Fundamental Rights), the political wing of the Peruvian terrorist group the Shining Path. In that context, and as a Peruvian American with many family members still living in Peru, I believe it is clearly in the United States’s interest that Keiko Fujimori win.
Here is a primer on each candidate.
Fujimori studied in America, earning her undergraduate degree at Boston University and an MBA at Columbia University. While at Columbia, Fujimori met and married an American, Mark Villanella, with whom she has two children. It stands to reason given her studies in America, along with her family ties through marriage, that Fujimori would pursue closer cooperation between Peru and the U.S.
Fujimori, like her former president father, is in favor of sensible free-market policies. Given the manner in which the COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected the Peruvian people — the death toll is more than double what was previously thought, and now stands at 180,764 — and with the Peruvian economy suffering, Fujimori’s economic views are much-needed.
Terrorism recently reared its ugly head once again when 16 people were killed toward the end of May, in the impoverished VRAEM (Valle de los Rios Apurimac, Ene, y Mantaro) region. Peru’s armed forces say the attack was carried out by the notorious Shining Path terrorist group. Fujimori has made it clear that she plans to eliminate the Shining Path’s remnants.
Castillo has a very different and much darker vision for Peru.
He has openly threatened to shutter the country’s constitutional court, a statement he took back when he realized the polls responded unfavorably, and wants to eliminate freedom of the press. Castillo also wants to scrap private pensions and burden the mining sector, one of the few sectors of the Peruvian economy that is consistently profitable and essential to the country’s economic development, with increased regulation and taxation. The risk is that this strategy would disincentivize further foreign investment. Since Peru is the world’s second-largest copper producer and has a free trade agreement with Washington, what happens on Sunday will undoubtedly affect the U.S.
Ultimately, Castillo is banking on understandable disgust at Fujimori’s father’s crimes against humanity and corruption. In addition, Castillo is looking to make this election a referendum on the past 30 years of economic development in Peru, arguing that wealth inequality has skyrocketed and that discrimination against indigenous peoples has closed off pathways to success for most Peruvians. While economic statistics clearly show increased prosperity for all Peruvians over the past 30 years, including substantial middle-class growth, the narrative being pushed by Castillo rings true to many.
In turn, if Fujimori wins, she must address the social inequities that Castillo has highlighted. But do so in a manner that aligns with her pro-market policy proposals. She must also not pardon her father, unreservedly apologize for her own open corruption case, and ensure that she represents all Peruvians. With a 1- to 2-point difference separating Fujimori and Castillo, it’s anyone’s guess who will be Peru’s next president.
J.P. Carroll is a senior fellow for national security and inclusive governance at the Joseph Rainey Center for Public Policy. He tweets @JPCarrollDC1.
