What to know about the removal of Peru’s president — yet again — and what’s to come

Peru’s Congress ousted interim President José Jerí on Tuesday, plunging the South American nation into yet another political crisis just weeks before presidential elections scheduled for April 12.

Jerí, who became Peru’s seventh president in less than a decade when he took office in October 2023, will be replaced by a member of Congress who will lead the country through the upcoming election until the new president is sworn in on July 28.

The 39-year-old lawyer and former head of Congress, who represented the small conservative Somos Peru party, ascended to the presidency after lawmakers removed then-President Dina Boluarte amid rising concerns over violent crime in the country. His tenure, originally expected to last until July, was cut short as corruption allegations emerged and congressional support for his leadership evaporated.

At the center of Jerí’s removal are corruption and influence peddling allegations being investigated by Peru’s Attorney General’s office. The charges stem from undisclosed meetings with two Chinese businessmen in December—one holding active government contracts and the other under investigation for alleged connections to illegal logging operations.

Though Jerí has denied any wrongdoing, insisting the meetings were meant to organize a Peruvian-Chinese cultural event, Congress cited these allegations as sufficient reason to declare him “morally incapable” of executing his presidential duties, a controversial constitutional clause that has been widely interpreted by legislators to remove presidents who fall out of political favor.

This latest presidential removal highlights Peru’s ongoing political instability. The country’s constitution contains a provision allowing legislators to remove presidents deemed “morally incapable,” giving the legislative branch significant leverage over the executive. This has contributed to Peru’s revolving door of leadership, with seven presidents serving in the past decade—only two of whom were directly elected by popular vote.

The others have been vice presidents stepping in for deposed leaders or congressional appointees selected by their peers to lead the nation during transitions. This pattern has created a governance system where the presidency has been notably weakened while Congress has consolidated power.

Despite this political turmoil, Peru’s economy has maintained remarkable stability over the past decade. Successive governments, regardless of their brief tenures, have adhered to orthodox economic policies characterized by modest fiscal spending. The country currently maintains one of Latin America’s lowest public debt-to-GDP ratios at 32%, and has consistently welcomed foreign investment in key sectors like mining and infrastructure.

However, political analysts have expressed growing concern that Peru’s increasingly assertive Congress has passed legislation in recent years that potentially undermines the independence of the country’s judiciary, raising questions about the health of the nation’s democratic institutions.

Following Jerí’s removal, legislators will convene on Wednesday night to elect a new interim president from among four candidates nominated by various congressional coalitions spanning the political spectrum. The temporary leader will oversee the upcoming presidential election on April 12.

In that race, Rafael López Aliaga, a conservative businessman and former mayor of Lima, currently leads a crowded field that includes former legislator Keiko Fujimori, daughter of Alberto Fujimori, who governed Peru in the 1990s. Keiko Fujimori is making her fourth bid for the presidency, having narrowly lost runoff elections in previous attempts.

If no presidential candidate secures more than 50% of votes on April 12, a runoff election between the top two contenders will be held in June, with the winner taking office on July 28 for a five-year term.

For many Peruvians, this latest episode of political instability has become an all-too-familiar cycle, raising questions about the structural challenges facing the country’s governance system and the prospects for sustainable political stability in the coming years.