This March 8, Peru commemorates International Women’s Day amidst a unique political scenario. The country is heading towards general elections that once again highlight a recurring characteristic of national politics: the scarce presence of women in the presidential race.
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The electoral process on April 12 records 37 presidential candidacies, the highest number in the country’s history. However, only four are headed by women: Keiko Fujimori, Fiorella Molinelli, Marisol Pérez Tello and Rosario Fernández, representing just over 10% of the applications.
The data usually appears every electoral cycle accompanied by an inevitable discussion: whether this gap reflects obstacles to female participation or if it also responds to individual decisions, professional trajectories, and the dynamics of political parties themselves.
In a democracy, access to power does not depend on demographic quotas but on the ability to compete, build leadership, and gain electoral support. But that principle coexists with another question: whether the conditions to compete are effectively equal.
Between vocations, opportunities, and political culture
The participation of women in Peruvian politics has grown in recent decades, especially in Congress and local governments, driven in part by parity and alternation mechanisms.
However, the presidential race remains a particularly restricted space.
Specialists in politics and gender often point out that factors such as political harassment, extreme public exposure, or the demands of party life can discourage female participation in the front line of power.
Other analysts, on the other hand, warn that the lower presence of women in the presidential race may also reflect different professional or life decisions, something that occurs in multiple countries and professions where trajectories are not necessarily distributed identically between men and women.
The discussion, therefore, is not reduced solely to the final number of candidacies, but to whether women who wish to participate find equitable conditions to do so.
The new president and his controversial statements
The recent change of command in the country also introduced a symbolic element into this debate.
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On February 18, 2026, Congressman José María Balcázar, from Perú Libre, assumed the presidency following the departure of José Jerí. His arrival in office was defined by a vote in Congress: 60 votes in favor compared to 46 supporting María del Carmen Alva, the only female candidate in that dispute.
Beyond the result, Balcázar’s figure also generated controversy due to his previous statements on issues related to women’s rights.
In 2023, during the Congressional debate on the prohibition of child marriage, Balcázar stated that sexual relations at an early age could benefit the psychological development of women as long as there was no violence. The Ministry of Women pointed out that scientific evidence contradicts that statement, and Congresswoman Flor Pablo requested his removal as president of the Education Commission.
The statements revived a broader debate on the quality of public discourse and the standards required of those in positions of power. In a country where politics is going through a crisis of representation and trust, episodes like this also fuel a broader question: what type of leadership do parties promote and what criteria ultimately weigh when deciding who gets to govern.
What 8M poses to Peruvian democracy
Peru reaches this International Women’s Day in the midst of deep political fragmentation, with dozens of parties in competition and a citizenry that shows high levels of distrust towards its institutions.
In this scenario, female participation in politics continues to be a subject of debate.
The issue is not necessarily how many women compete for the presidency, but whether those who aspire to do so have the same opportunities to develop leadership, build political careers, and compete on equal terms.
The political history of the country shows that access to power has been marked by party networks, personal trajectories, and changing political contexts.
The question that remains open is not whether there should be a certain number of female candidates, but whether the Peruvian political system allows any citizen—man or woman—who aspires to govern to do so under truly equitable conditions.
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