Updated 12:51 AM EDT, Tue, Mar 19, 2024

Peru Elections: Presidential Hopeful Julio Guzman Facing Possible Disqualification Due to Lack of Requirements

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Peru's Electoral Board may be throwing yet another presidential candidate out of the race for the second time this week.

Julio Guzman, who is a technocrat and self-professed "outsider," may be disqualified in the race, just two months before elections. The reason, according to the National Jury of Elections, is that he failed to fulfill requirements upon registering his party.

Last week, Reuters noted that the board also investigated the candidacy of former governor Cesar Acuna, who is under plagiarism allegations and will be disqualified if proof is presented against him.

Besides facing the possibility of disqualification so close to elections, Guzman and Acuna have other things in common: they have gained the support of many Peruvians, despite the fact that they are first timers in such a big race. The other leading candidates are well-known politicians who have made a run for the presidency at least once in their career already.

The announcement regarding Guzman's possible disqualification comes just after the latest polls revealed him to be second in the upcoming race -- a position he and Acuna were previously competing against each other for. VOA News also noted that both men's popularity came in part from Peruvians who, after suffering from crime and corruption for so long, have been clamoring for someone new.

Peru This Week noted that on Wednesday, his entire party, Everyone for Peru (Todos por el Peru), was declared by the National Jury of Elections (JNE) to have violated party agreements, rendering them invalid for the elections. JNE said that at the general assembly meeting held by the political party, they approved several modifications of the registration that didn't comply with Guzman's party's time requirements.

If the board disqualifies Guzman or Acuna, more established candidates will get a chance to compete in the last leg of the race. VOA reported Guzman saying that a "dark hand" is the most likely culprit behind the JNE's decision, which comes just a few days he jumped eight points in the poll made by GfK Peru.

However, Guzman maintains that this will not affect his candidacy. He said, "I am confident that they will analyze the situation very well and will make the best decision for the country. The situation is so obvious in terms of what is at stake for the nation and the right of all Peruvians to participate that I have confidence that the jury will give the go and there will be no problem."

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