Upcoming Peruvian Presidential Elections

A local PSA to prepare people for Sunday's elections

Sunday, April 10, is election day in Peru. Understanding any election is difficult. Understanding an election in a foreign country is even harder. So if you really want to know about Peruvian presidential politics, this blog is not your best source. But I do want to explain the bits that I do understand because it's interesting to see how another democracy works.

Obligatory Voting

Voting is obligatory in Peru for citizens between the ages of 18 and 70. Voting is illegal for persons under 18 and legal but not required for persons over 70. If you do not vote, you have to pay a fine. The fine varies by where you live.

Non-poor Districts	S/. 79.00
Poor Districts	S/. 39.50
Extremely Poor Districts	S/. 19.75

As far as I can tell, there is no absentee ballot system in Peru. All voting is done in person on election day. Some Cusco-based Limeñans I know are deciding to pay the fee instead of the plane ticket to go vote because it's cheaper. You have to show up to the polling place where you are registered. But it sounds like the way polling places are assigned isn't as simple as in the US. Some families in Lima have to vote in different locations despite all living in the same apartment. Changing your residency for voting purposes also sounds difficult. A Cusqueñan friend has to come back to Urcos to vote even though she's been living in Lima for the last 5 years and has a job there.

Multiple Rounds

Peru has a lot more parties than the United States does. I have no idea how party candidates are chosen, but I'm pretty sure it isn't through a primary process, because there haven't been any primaries. Sunday's vote will almost certainly NOT determine who will be the next president of Peru. Instead it will narrow the field down to 2 candidates. The top two candidates in Sunday's election will face each other in a runoff election in June.

Ballots

Here's what a Peruvian ballot looks like:

First things first, despite what the second option says, there is not a “Peace and Love Party.” This is an example ballot, so it doesn't have the real parties, candidates or symbols. However, a Peruvian voter will see the ballot options represented in words, a symbol for the political party, and a photograph of the candidate. This probably has to do with Peru's illiteracy rate, which is just over 10%.* I think it says something good that rather than disenfranchising people who haven't been well educated, the government has found a way to make sure everyone can vote.

*According to IndexMundi