US State Department says elections in Peru were fair and a “model of democracy”

(Reuters) – US State Department spokesman Ned Price said Tuesday that Peru’s recent presidential elections were fair and a model of democracy in the region, in a show of support for the work of the country’s electoral authorities. .

Peru carried out the presidential ballot on June 6 and the electoral jury is still evaluating challenges before officially declaring the winner of the elections, which according to the vote count was the socialist Pedro Castillo, with a narrow advantage over the right-wing Keiko Fujimori.

The vast majority of the challenges and requests for annulment of votes have been presented by Fujimori, the daughter of the imprisoned former president Alberto Fujimori, without further evidence.

“We congratulate the Peruvian authorities for safely administering another round of free, fair, accessible and peaceful elections, even amid the significant challenges of the covid-19 pandemic,” Price said in a statement.

«These recent elections are a model of democracy in the region. We support giving the electoral authorities time to process and publish the results in accordance with Peruvian law, “added the US spokesman.

Price said that the United States and Peru share a deep-rooted friendship, which has also resulted in mutual cooperation on health, safety and environmental protection issues.

“The United States hopes to continue this important alliance with the candidate duly chosen by the Peruvian people, as confirmed by the Peruvian electoral authorities,” he said.