Peru's presidential frontrunner Keiko Fujimori vowed expel illegal migrants, attract US investment and extend a conservative tide sweeping power in Latin America, in an exclusive interview with AFP on the eve of Sunday's election.
Fujimori pledged a military-tinged effort to "restore order" to crime-hit Peru in her first 100 days in office and sought a united front with conservative leaders in Washington, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Bolivia.
Keiko is the 50-year-old daughter of ex-president Alberto Fujimori, who spent 16 years in jail for crimes against humanity before dying in September 2024.
She is one of 35 candidates in the record field and has a slender lead in pre-election polls.
The last Ipsos survey before a polling blackout gave her about 15 percent support -- the highest tally of any candidate and likely enough to advance to a two-person runoff in June.
Her rivals include a popular comedian, an octogenarian ex-mayor, and a businessman who likens himself to a cartoon pig.
Candidates have largely focused their campaigns on tackling crime, which polls show is the top concern of Peruvians who are facing an exponential rise in extortion.
Many blame foreign gangs for the surge in violence, although experts also point to homegrown groups.
"We will ask for special powers -- powers to modernize police stations, and powers for the Armed Forces to help us control the prisons," she told AFP in Lima.
"The Armed Forces will participate alongside the National Police in controlling the borders. We will expel undocumented citizens," she said, echoing hardline policies that are gaining political traction across the Americas.
"Latin America is seeing a current in which freedom, investment, and the recovery of control and security are being prioritized," she said.
"This began with President (Javier) Milei, President (Daniel) Noboa, Rodrigo Paz, President (Jose Antonio) Kast," she added.
"Colombia and Peru are still missing, but without a doubt, all of this is further consolidated with the arrival of President Trump."
Signalling plans to forge close relations with Washington, Fujimori said, "my role, if elected president, will be to encourage the United States to once again participate more actively."
- Perennial candidate -
This is Fujimori's fourth tilt at the presidency. In previous campaigns, she has slightly distanced herself from the troubled legacy of her father.
His government crushed a bloody leftist insurgency in the 1990s.
He was jailed for a string of offenses, including signing off on massacres.
This time round, Fujimori junior has capitalized on growing nostalgia for strongman leadership.
"I believe that time and history are giving my father the place he deserves," she said.
"Today, when Peru is bleeding because of criminals and extortionists, what people are asking for is a Fujimori - here I am."
To succeed in the second round, Fujimori will have to overcome deep mistrust of the political class.
According to a recent Ipsos poll, 16 percent of voters are undecided about whom to support, and another 11 percent plan to vote blank, a striking figure in a country with compulsory voting.
Political jockeying and backstabbing have seen eight presidents come and go in a decade.
"I understand the disillusionment," she said, acknowledging that in the past she may have been too bareknuckle in her approach.
"I have made mistakes, including moments of strong confrontation. We have learned from that. We have learned to prioritize dialogue and to foster consensus."
Sunday will also see Peruvians elect lawmakers, and the new congress is likely to be deeply fragmented, making backroom deals a key part of political survival.
"I start from the premise that we must engage in dialogue," she said.
"The next Congress will have to achieve consensus, especially on the issue of security".
"I have already listened to several presidential candidates and believe that we agree on the urgency of the measures and on the support that institutions must receive -- particularly on restoring control at the borders."
