Alfredo Salazar says he has never really been too interested in politics and never saw himself attending a campaign-closing rally in Lima, Peru’s bustling capital. But the 48-year old shop owner did just that on April 5, pushing his way into the crowd in a downtown plaza to listen to Ollanta Humala, the leading candidate in a field of 10 running for President of Peru this Sunday.
“I think he is the best candidate and I wanted to hear what he had to say,” Salazar shouted over music and fireworks as Humala finished an hour-long speech that included fist-pumping attacks on the country’s political class and a pledge to change the country’s economic model that he says only works for a small percentage of Peru’s 30 million people.
Humala, 48, is on the cusp of placing first in the balloting April 10, charging past more seasoned politicians. What is stunning is he has done it with a left-wing nationalist discourse that most political pundits and politicians predicted would not resonate with voters. Humala has polling close to 30% in the latest polls, which should ensure him a spot in a run-off election scheduled for June 5. Under Peruvian legislation a winning candidate must obtain 50% plus one of the votes to get elected, otherwise the top two candidates go into a runoff. The race right now is to see who will face Humala.
This is a repeat scenario of five years ago, when Humala placed first and Lourdes Flores Nano and Alan Garcia fought ballot by ballot to get into the crucial runner-up position. Garcia eventually won by 60,000 votes and went on to defeat Humala in a runoff.
