Deeply divided Peru awaits final results of presidential vote | Al Jazeera

Peruvians are still waiting on the final results of their country’s presidential election, as leftist union leader Pedro Castillo maintains a razor-thin edge over right-wing Keiko Fujimori days after the deeply polarised vote.

With 99.8 percent of the ballots counted on Wednesday afternoon, Castillo had 50.19 percent support compared with Fujimori’s 49.8 percent.

Sunday’s runoff came amid years of political instability in Peru, which is also struggling to cope with surging COVID-19 infections and deaths and a pandemic-related economic downturn.

Castillo leads by more than 67,000 of the 17.4 million valid votes counted, but with votes still being tallied and ballots being challenged by both sides, it could take days for a final official result to be announced.

The count has slowed as ballots are being sent in from abroad, as well as arriving in the capital, Lima, from Peru’s more remote, rural areas – a stronghold of support for Castillo.