The first round of the presidential debate featuring 11 candidates, out of a total of 35, was held in Lima on Monday evening.
The event—organized by the National Elections Board (JNE)—focused on citizen security and combating crime, as well as public integrity and the fight against corruption.
The second day of this debate cycle will continue Tuesday evening, featuring 12 additional presidential candidates, who will present their proposals on the same social issues.
The two-and-a-half-hour debate ran smoothly, fostering discussion on proposals aimed at tackling crime and corruption in public administration.
It took place at the Lima Convention Center in Lima's San Borja district.
The following candidates took part in the first round:
Maria Soledad Perez Tello — Primero La Gente – Comunidad, Ecologia, Libertad y Progreso (People First – Community, Ecology, Liberty, and Progress)
Jose Luna — Podemos Peru (We Can Peru)
Alfonso Lopez-Chau — Ahora Nacion (Now Nation)
Yonhy Lescano — Partido Politico Cooperacion Popular (Popular Cooperation Political Party)
Carlos Alvarez — Partido Pais para Todos (Country for All Party)
Fernando Olivera — Partido Frente de la Esperanza 2021 (2021 Hope Front Party)
Wolfgang Grozo — Partido Politico Integridad Democratica (Democratic Integrity Political Party)
Cesar Acuña — Alianza para el Progreso (Alliance for Progress)
Jose Williams — Avanza Pais-Partido de Integracion Social (Go On Country-Social Integration Party)
Rafael Lopez Aliaga — Renovacion Popular (Popular Renewal)
Alex Gonzales — Partido Democrata Verde (Green Democratic Party)
Issues
Two debate topics were defined in advance by consensus among the political organizations:
1. Citizen security and fight against crime
2. Public integrity and fight against corruption
In the first session, the 11 candidates participated across four segments.
Interaction among the contenders took place in segments 1 and 3, where they were organized into four groups of three.
In the second segment, a citizen question round was held, during which each candidate had one minute to respond to questions submitted by citizens through the JNE.
Questions covered a range of topics, including health and the economy, among others defined in advance.
In the fourth segment, the candidates delivered their closing messages to the citizenry.
During the first session, journalists Fernando Carvalho and Claudia Chiroque served as moderators, selected by consensus among the political organizations.