Peru's Congress voted to elect Jose Maria Ballazar as the new president, marking the eighth president in 10 years amid a decade-long political crisis. His main task is to lead the country to general elections within the next five months, following the removal of the most recent leader over ethical concerns related to secret meetings with Chinese businessmen.
Peru's Congress appointed 83-year-old legislator Jose Maria Ballazar as the country's eighth president in 10 years. He replaces the previous acting leader who was ousted just one day earlier due to corruption allegations after only four months in office.
Ballazar, a former judge and representative of the leftist Perú Libre party, defeated three other candidates by winning a majority of the 130 congressional seats. This frequent leadership change reflects a deep political crisis caused by presidents lacking majority support in Congress, leading legislators to often exploit a constitutional loophole on "permanent ethical unsuitability" to remove presidents.
Earlier on Tuesday (17 Feb), Congress voted to impeach Jose Jeri, the conservative acting president who had served since October 2025. The move followed revelations that he secretly met with Chinese businesspeople and state contractors without prior notice, despite his claim that the meetings were to coordinate the Peru-China festival.
Currently, the Attorney General's Office has launched preliminary investigations against Jeri on two main charges: illegally favoring private business groups and abusing power for personal gain, causing damage to the state.
Ballazar will serve as president for five months to stabilize the situation until power is transferred to the winner of the general election scheduled for 12 April. Peruvians will vote for both president and a new Congress. If no candidate achieves over 50% of the vote, a runoff election will be held in June.
The successor to Ballazar faces significant challenges, especially a rising crime crisis marked by increased murders and extortion, severely affecting small business owners and the working class. Meanwhile, various political groups have called on the interim government to ensure the upcoming elections are conducted with the utmost transparency.