The 12.7 million Peruvian voters who voted for mayors and regional government officials on October 3, 2010, continue to wait for official results from the Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (ONPE) on who will be Lima’s next mayor. According to the latest tally, released today, with 95.8 percent of votes counted, Susana Villarán of the Fuerza Social party has received 38.4 percent of the votes (1,685,624 votes) and her opponent, Lourdes Flores has 37.6 percent (1,650,641). That is a difference of just 34,983 votes (0.797 percent).
The delay in official results is of great concern not only to the candidates, but to the entire city government. Given current projections, the winner of the mayoral race would likely enter office only five days before the delivery of 2011 municipal budgets.
The three-week delay has also led to speculation of voter fraud. In response, Fuerza Social is leading a protest today in front of the ONPE headquarters in Lima. The party is also calling on Lourdes Flores to join calls for a transparent and fair counting process. Either way, this election will mark the first time a female candidate will become Lima’s mayor.