Peruvian citizens residing abroad will begin voting in the 2026 General Elections before polls open in Peru due to time zone differences.
New Zealand will be the first country where ballots are cast, followed by Australia.
Why do some countries vote before Peru?
Because of time differences, the electoral process abroad is conducted according to each country's local time, within official voting hours of 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
As a result, in regions located east of Peru, such as Oceania and Asia, voting will begin while it is still Saturday, April 11, in Peruvian territory.
Countries that will vote first
Countries in Oceania, including New Zealand and Australia, will be the first to start voting.
In those nations, the electoral day will begin on Saturday, April 11, between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. (Peru time), with New Zealand leading the process, more than 17 hours ahead of Peru.
Similarly, Peruvians residing in East Asian countries such as Japan, Indonesia, China, and the Philippines will begin voting on Saturday, April 11, at approximately 5:00 p.m. (Peru time).
Voting will then continue in Europe and Africa, where citizens will cast their ballots during the early hours of Sunday, April 12 (Peru time).
Finally, the process will proceed across countries in the Americas.
Peruvians abroad
A total of 1,210,813 Peruvians abroad are eligible to vote in these elections.
He reminded citizens that they must present their physical National Identity Document (DNI) to vote, as passports are not accepted.
The diplomat indicated that elections will not be held in Venezuela. In contrast, the process will proceed normally in countries such as Mexico and Cuba.
In areas near international conflicts, including Egypt and Türkiye, security measures will be implemented.
Meanwhile, voting will not take place in Israel, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, or Ukraine. In the latter case, polling stations will be set up in Poland.
Following election day, electoral materials will be sent progressively to Peru between April 13 and 17, depending on each country's air connectivity.