With rising crime on their minds, Peruvians to vote for president yet again

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peruvians choose between two presidential hopefuls with starkly different views Sunday, as they elect their ninth head of state in 10 years amid growing concerns about crime.

Keiko Fujimori, a conservative and daughter of a disgraced former president, and Roberto Sánchez, a nationalist congressman, are on the ballot after beating 33 other candidates in the first round in April, but neither earned even 20% of support. Pollsters estimate that roughly 30% of voters remain undecided.

Sunday’s results are expected to be tight, and if the earlier vote was any indication, the outcome may not be known for days. Electoral authorities took more than a month to officially declare Fujimori and Sánchez the winners of that vote.

Voting is mandatory for Peruvians from the ages of 18 to 70. More than 27 million people are registered, and of those, about 1.2 million are expected to cast ballots from abroad, mainly in the United States and Argentina.

Official results from April’s election showed Fujimori obtained 17% of the vote, while Sánchez garnered 12%. More than six weeks later, a nationwide poll conducted by the firm Ipsos found that similar shares of voters were supporting Fujimori and Sánchez, with about 3 in 10 saying they were undecided.

Fujimori is linked to the authoritarian and corrupt legacy of the government of her late father, Alberto Fujimori, in the 1990s. She became Peru's first lady in 1994 after her parents’ separation.

Sánchez is one of the closest allies of jailed former President Pedro Castillo, whom many perceive as corrupt and chaotic. Castillo’s 16-month term saw more than 70 Cabinet changes.

Surging crime, particularly extortion, remains the overarching concern. A 2025 national survey carried out by the state’s National Institute of Statistics and Informatics found that 84% of respondents in urban areas feared becoming victims of a crime in the following 12 months.

Experts attribute the increasing power of organized crime in Peru to the profits that decades-old criminal groups are earning from illegal gold mining in the Andes and the Amazon.

For most of her fourth presidential campaign, Fujimori promised to crack down on crime. Her proposals include implementing technology to track extortions, militarizing borders and increasing the presence of police and military personnel in high-risk areas. Fujimori, 51, has also said that prisoners will be required to work and “repay society.”

In the only debate prior to the runoff, Fujimori defended her father’s government and promised to defeat crime just as he defeated the Shining Path, a violent extremist group. She told voters that should she win, they will be able to leave their homes and return without having become victims of a crime.

Meanwhile, Sánchez, a former minister now popular with rural voters, has pledged to combat corruption within the police force and promote reforms that would enable the military to support security efforts.

The 57-year-old, who wears a wide-brimmed peasant hat gifted by Castillo, told debate viewers that he would be open to “all options to generate jobs and progress” but also emphasized his support for Chinese investments.

He also has tried to ease the concerns his candidacy is generating among investors, saying he will not nationalize any assets of transnational companies that extract minerals or gas from Peru.

Garcia Cano reported from Mexico City.

A worker removes a campaign banner of presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori of the Popular Force party placed near a polling station in Lima, Peru, Saturday, June 6, 2026, ahead of Peru's presidential runoff election. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Presidential candidate Roberto Sanchez of Together for Peru party addresses supporters during his closing campaign rally in Lima, Peru, Thursday, June 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

A supporters hols a banner of presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori during her closing campaign rally in Lima, Peru, Thursday, June 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Members of the military stand in formation before their departure to protect polling places in Lima, Peru, Friday, June 5, 2026, ahead of their presidential runoff election. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

People line up to collect their national identity cards ahead of Peru's presidential runoff election in Lima, Peru, Saturday, June 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

PARIS (AP) — Alexander Zverev is under pressure to win an elusive Grand Slam title when he plays 14th-ranked Flavio Cobolli in the French Open final on Sunday.

It’s the fourth major final of Zverev’s career and it’s a unique opportunity for the third-ranked German without Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz across the net.

The final on the red clay of Roland Garros starts st 3 p.m. (1300 GMT; 9 a.m. ET).

Zverev has been an overwhelming favorite for the title ever since the top-ranked Sinner struggled in the first week’s heat wave and wasted a two set and 5-1 lead against Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round. A day later, 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic was also eliminated.

Alcaraz, the two-time reigning champion, withdrew before the tournament with an injured right wrist.

It’s Zverev’s second French Open final, having wasted a lead of two sets to one against Alcaraz in the 2024 championship match.

Zverev had an even bigger advantage — two sets to none — in the 2020 U.S. Open final and lost that one, too, to Dominic Thiem. He was also beaten in straight sets by Sinner in the 2025 Australian Open final.

Cobolli had never been past a Grand Slam quarterfinal until this week.

He’s attempting to become the first Italian man to raise the singles trophy at Roland Garros since Adriano Panatta 50 years ago.

Cobolli comes from the same tennis club in Rome as Panatta and Panatta has been asked by tournament organizers to present the Coupe des Mousquetaires to the champion to celebrate the anniversary of his 1976 triumph.

Both players have dropped only two sets en route to the final.

Zverev has won three of his four career meetings with Cobolli, including a straight-sets victory in the third round in Paris a year ago. But they’ve also split two encounters on clay this season: Cobolli won in straight sets in Munich and Zverev won in straight sets in Madrid.

Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva won the women's singles trophy on Saturday.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Italy's Flavio Cobolli returns to Zachary Svajda of the United States during the fourth-round tennis match at the French Open in Paris, Monday, June 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Italy's Flavio Cobolli reacts after winning the quarterfinal tennis match against Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime at the French Open in Paris, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Germany's Alexander Zverev serves to Czech Republic's Jakub Mensik during the semifinal tennis match at the French Open in Paris, Friday, June 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Germany's Alexander Zverev returns to Czech Republic's Jakub Mensik during the semifinal tennis match at the French Open in Paris, Friday, June 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)