(Read Part 1)

Labeled “far-right” and “ultraconservative” by the Spanish-speaking mainstream media, López Aliaga must be doing something right. Known as “Porky” — due to his resemblance to the cartoon character of the same name — he unhesitatingly embraced the nickname as an integral part of his campaign identity.

A native of the northern city of Chiclayo, López Aliaga hails from a family of engineers — a professional path he eventually followed himself.

He witnessed firsthand the violence perpetrated by leftist terrorist groups in the country during the 1980s. As he was nearing the completion of his degree at Pedro Ruiz Gallo University, the institution — as he has recounted — “fell into a vicious cycle of strikes and blockades due to the infiltration of elements from the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement and Shining Path.”

A banker, entrepreneur in the tourism and hospitality sector, university professor, and founder of schools and a technology center, he fits the profile that has successfully broken into high-level politics across the Americas in recent years: the “outsider.”

From 2007 to 2020, he served as a provincial councilor; in 2022, he assumed the office of Mayor of Lima, where he forged connections with broad segments of the city’s periphery thanks to his social initiatives. When, in 2025, he launched his second consecutive bid for the presidency with his party Renovación Popular (RP), the Peruvian capital stood as one of his key strongholds.

Among his government plans are reforms to the Judiciary and the Public Prosecutor’s Office, featuring merit-based promotions, defined career paths, and efforts to attract top talent to public service.

His “iron-fist” approach to crime would authorize the use of “faceless judges” to prosecute cases of “urban terrorism” while ensuring the safety of the magistrates themselves; it also calls for the establishment of prisons in the Amazon jungle for high-risk criminals — facilities where inmates would be held incommunicado and subject to mandatory labor. These specific details are reminiscent of the security policies implemented by El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele.

Regarding foreign relations, López Aliaga would seek Peru’s withdrawal from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in an effort to reclaim national legal sovereignty — which he views as being influenced by the decisions of supranational bureaucratic bodies.

He also pledges to impact the social sphere, though his plans in this regard remain somewhat unclear. On one hand, he promises a reduction of the state along the lines of Argentina’s Javier Milei; yet, he would also implement a National Program for the Prevention, Detection, and Treatment of Drug Addiction and Alcoholism, and would expand and enhance the state-sponsored Agricultural Insurance against Catastrophes for Family Farming.

López Aliaga is a staunch defender of life, the family, and Western values. A self-described militant Catholic who has forged solid alliances with evangelicals, he has made faith an integral part of his work — both as mayor of Lima and as a presidential candidate.

Facing Fujimori

Keiko Fujimori — a former first lady and former congresswoman — holds a comfortable lead over López Aliaga and the rest of the candidates vying to advance to a second-round runoff election in June.

This marks the fourth time in the last 15 years that she has successfully advanced to a runoff. In the three previous instances, she lost the second-round vote: first against Ollanta Humala, then against Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, and finally against the failed coup leader Pedro Castillo.

Keiko is the daughter of Alberto Fujimori, who served as Peru’s president from 1990 to 2000, when he was removed from office amidst accusations of corruption. In 2007, he was convicted of multiple crimes across a series of trials.

The Fujimori surname carries significant weight in Peru. While some hold it in high esteem, others perceive it as carrying a stigma that renders any politician bearing the name unfit for office.

For this reason — as Henry Ziemer, a researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, noted to CNN — López Aliaga’s chances of reaching the presidency may actually be higher in a second-round runoff that pits him head-to-head against Fujimori.

The same dynamic, however, would likely apply to leftist candidates as well. Roberto Sánchez, of the far-left party Juntos por el Perú, moved into second place on Wednesday, displacing Rafael López Aliaga. The shift occurred in the early hours of the morning, while party representatives and the general public were asleep.

By Friday, Sánchez was beating Aliaga by less than 1% of the vote, but Fujimori still led the pack— all while the ONPE, moving at a snail’s pace, has yet to count almost 7% of the remaining tally sheets.