Peru Abruptly Changes President—Again
HAVANA TIMES – In the early hours of Friday, October 10, Peru’s Congress removed President Dina Boluarte and replaced her with the head of Parliament, José Jerí, bringing the total to seven presidents in just nine years.
Boluarte, a 63-year-old lawyer who in December 2022 had replaced another ousted president, Pedro Castillo, was declared “vacant due to permanent moral incapacity” by virtually all the parliamentary groups, with 122 votes in favor and none against in the single-chamber legislature.
Jerí, a 38-year-old lawyer from the conservative right-wing party Somos Perú, who had only assumed the presidency of Congress two months earlier, must now govern until elections are held next April to choose the president who will take office in July.
Despite his rapid ascent, Jerí faces at least four ethics-related investigations, including a sexual abuse accusation involving a woman at a meeting where lots of alcohol was present—a case that was shelved just before his election as head of Congress.
He has also been accused of illicit enrichment since entering Congress in 2021 and later of allegedly leading a corruption network while chairing the legislature’s Budget Committee—charges Jerí denies, claiming they are political maneuvers by his opponents.
The swift ouster of Boluarte, a leader with virtually no political base or popular support, and her replacement by a figure of questionable ethics and weak credentials, once again underscored the fragility of presidential power and governance in Peru.
The fragmented Congress, dominated by Fujimorists and other right-wing groups, has routinely used its constitutional power to declare the presidency “vacant” to remove presidents—or later pursue them for corruption, often with judicial backing.
Since 2000, Peru has experienced turbulent leadership transitions, with 11 presidents before Jerí, beginning with Alberto Fujimori’s (1990-2000) resignation at the beginning of a disputed third term.
He was replaced by Valentín Paniagua, who led a respected and orderly transition until the 2001 election of Alejandro Toledo (2001–2006). Since then, every president has been embroiled in corruption scandals or has served chaotic, short-lived terms, one lasting as little as five days.
One former president, Alan García, who governed twice (1985–1990 and 2006–2011), and was ensnared in the Odebrecht bribery scandal, took his own life in 2019 moments before being arrested and brought to trial.
In contrast to its political instability, Peru’s economy has shown strong performance over the past two decades, driven by mining and China’s role as a key trading partner.
This year, even as Boluarte’s government unraveled, the International Monetary Fund projected 3% GDP growth—modest but above the Latin American regional average.
However, Boluarte’s administration hit record lows in approval, virtually within the margin of error toward zero, largely due to rampant insecurity frustrating Peru’s 33 million citizens.
Rates of homicide and extortion have risen relentlessly over the past nine years, with 1,690 murders between January and September 2025. This year alone, 180 bus drivers have been killed for refusing to pay extortion fees.
The final straw came this week when gunmen attacked the popular cumbia band Agua Marina during a concert at the Military Circle in Lima’s Chorrillos district, injuring four band members and a beverage vendor in the audience.
Boluarte, who had been Pedro Castillo’s running mate in the 2021 election, assumed the presidency immediately after his removal by Congress—a move that sparked massive protests in Peru’s poorest provinces.
The repression of those protests left over 60 people dead and hundreds injured. Boluarte refused to resign or call early elections.
Those demonstrations exposed the deep divide between rural Peru and Lima’s political elite, a gap already evident in the election of Castillo, a rural teacher who had promised to redirect power toward the country’s forgotten regions.
Boluarte herself later faced multiple scandals: possession of an undeclared luxury watch, a brother accused of influence peddling, misuse of public funds for personal expenses, and a self-approved pay raise that brought her salary to 25 times the minimum wage.
Earlier this year, she enacted a controversial amnesty law benefiting security forces accused of crimes during the anti-terrorism campaigns of the late 20th century—despite objections from UN and Inter-American human rights bodies.
On the international stage, Boluarte clashed with leftist governments in Colombia, Honduras, and Mexico, though she maintained a positive relationship with China, a major investor in Peru’s economy.
Her removal—after nearly three years of an uninspired presidency as Peru’s first female head of state—did not spark immediate street reactions, except for some transport workers who ended strikes and resumed service after paralyzing several routes to protest insecurity.
First published in Spanish by IPS and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.