Leftist candidate Pedro Castillo claimed victory after the final votes were counted from Peru’s June 6 presidential election, although his rival, right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori, disputes the outcome.
Although the count has been completed, the result has not been officially announced by election authorities. Nevertheless, Castillo thanked his supporters on Twitter.
Castillo, a 51-year-old rural school teacher, has a lead of more than 44,000 votes, garnering 50.12% to Fujimori’s 49.87%, according to the ONPE election body.
However, Fujimori has cried fraud in the election, and called on the JNE election jury to annul thousands of ballots, which could shift the results in her favor. The JNE jury is tasked with calling the final winner.
Fujimori told supporters in Lima on Tuesday that she would keep fighting and “defend Peru’s democracy.” Some prominent Fujimori supporters have even called for new elections to be held.