Former President Alberto Fujimori, who received a pardon in December from his convictions for corruption and responsibility for the murder of 25 people, plans to run for Peru’s presidency for the fourth time in 2026, according to his eldest daughter. Keiko Fujimori, leader of the right-wing Fuerza Popular party, announced this decision on social networks, stating that she and her father had made the decision together.
Despite the announcement, Peruvian law prohibits individuals convicted of corruption from holding the office of president or vice president. Fujimori, convicted in 2009 for his involvement in the killing of 25 Peruvians during his 1992 administration, has three convictions for corruption charges and owes approximately $15 million to the Treasury, according to the Attorney General’s Office specializing in corruption crimes. The former president was extradited from Chile in 2007 and remained imprisoned in Peru until December.
At 85 years old, Fujimori joined his daughter’s party in June, sharing a video on social media showing him alongside Keiko Fujimori with the phrase: “The founding leader of Fujimorism takes his place in Fuerza Popular.” Keiko Fujimori, 49, has herself competed for the presidency three times without success. On July 1st, she faces a trial on money laundering charges with the prosecution seeking a 30-year prison sentence.
Alberto Fujimori, who governed Peru with an increasingly authoritarian approach from 1990 to 2000, has been working to rebuild his public image on social networks since his release from prison in December. This release followed a 2017 presidential pardon that was later reinstated by Peru’s Constitutional Court. In May, Fujimori reported being diagnosed with a malignant tumor on his tongue and underwent hip replacement surgery in July after a fall, as confirmed by his daughter.
