Peru’s ‘Porky’, mayor of Lima, quits to run for president

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By Marco Aquino

LIMA (Reuters) -The mayor of Peru’s capital, Rafael Lopez Aliaga resigned on Monday from his post to become the first presidential contender in April’s election, as the country navigates a fresh political crisis following an abrupt change of government.

The governor of the northwestern region of La Libertad, millionaire businessman Cesar Acuna, also announced his resignation to run in the 2026 general elections.

Lopez Aliaga, a conservative politician, businessman and former member of Catholic organization Opus Dei, signed his resignation in a ceremony before the Lima city council as he seeks to make a second consecutive run for the presidency.

He is the only candidate polling in double digits at this early stage of the 2026 race, with 10% support according to the latest Ipsos survey.

Over a third of Peruvian voters, 39%, remained undecided.

Known as “Porky” by residents who see a resemblance to a cartoon character called Porky Pig, Lopez Aliaga has embraced his nickname, using a pig as his personal mascot and frequently deploying the animal at public events.

Acuna, the second right-wing governor to announce his presidential run, is polling at 2%.

Under Peruvian law, all officials must resign six months before elections and have until December 23 to officially register their candidacy with the national elections jury.

General elections have been scheduled for April 12 next year.

Lopez Aliaga’s Popular Renewal was among the right-wing parties that historically supported former President Dina Boluarte, but last Thursday it backed a fresh push to remove her from office. Hours later, Congress lawmakers removed her in a unanimous vote.

She was replaced by Congress president Jose Jeri, who stood next in the line of succession as she did not have a vice president.

The electoral jury has so far approved 39 parties and alliances from across the political spectrum to put candidates forward, setting the scene for another polarized electoral campaign in the region.

An upcoming election in neighboring Chile is meanwhile set to pitch a progressive leftist against a far-right hardliner on migration and security issues in a presidential vote next month.

The removal of Boluarte, one of the world’s least popular leaders who left office with approval ratings between 2% and 4%, has resulted in Peru averaging one and a half presidents per year since 2018.

Three former presidents are currently behind bars.

(Reporting by Marco Aquino; Writing by Sarah Morland and Natalia Siniawski; Editing by William Maclean and Lincoln Feast.)