# Peru installs its third president in weeks as Congress removes Dina Boluarte and Keiko Fujimori leads the June 2026 presidential election first round > Peru's Congress impeached President Dina Boluarte on 8 February 2026 for constitutional abandonment, installed José Jeri as interim president, then replaced him with Cristina Balcázar on 19 February after questions about Jeri's eligibility; Keiko Fujimori of Fuerza Popular won the most first-round votes in the June 2026 election with results expected by early July **Meta:** type: story · date: 2026-02-19 · heads: 누가 결정하는가, 그들이 말하지 않는 것 · 6 takes · 5 lenses · 3 regions ## Summary Peru's Congress voted on 8 February 2026 to remove President Dina Boluarte under the constitutional "moral incapacity" clause, citing governance failures, unresolved criminal investigations linked to the December 2022 protest crackdown that killed dozens of demonstrators, and corruption allegations. Congress first installed José Jeri as interim president, but within days questions arose over his eligibility, and on 19 February 2026 Congress installed Cristina Balcázar as Peru's third head of government within two weeks. The Balcázar government is a caretaker administration operating under a Congress-imposed mandate to supervise the June 2026 general election. Keiko Fujimori of Fuerza Popular won the most first-round presidential votes in the June 2026 election; the results of the first round were expected to be certified in early July 2026, with a second round to follow if no candidate crossed 50%. The Boluarte impeachment was the latest in a cycle of executive removals that has left Peru with six presidents in ten years, each removed or resigned under the same congressional veto mechanism that political scientists have identified as a structural feature, not an exception, of the post-2016 Peruvian system. ## The split Supporters of Boluarte's removal argued that she had lost all political legitimacy after the 2022 crackdown, that her continued prosecution for corruption made it impossible to govern, and that the moral incapacity clause was constitutionally available and appropriately applied. Boluarte and her allies argued the removal was a congressional coup, driven by legislators seeking to avoid accountability for their own conduct, and that Peru's democracy was being hollowed out by a legislature that had weaponised the impeachment mechanism against every elected executive. International observers, including the OAS and several EU governments, expressed concern about the speed and pattern of removals without calling any individual impeachment unconstitutional. Fujimori's Fuerza Popular, which controls the largest congressional bloc, voted for the removal; the Fujimori camp now faces its own internal debate about whether Keiko Fujimori, who lost two prior presidential elections in 2016 and 2021 and spent time in pre-trial detention on corruption charges, has the political capital to govern after a narrow potential June victory. ## By the numbers - 6, number of Peruvian presidents since 2016 - 8 February 2026, date Boluarte was removed by Congress - 19 February 2026, date Cristina Balcázar installed as president - 2, number of interim presidents between Boluarte and Balcázar (Jeri briefly) - 2022, year of the Boluarte-era protest crackdown that killed dozens of demonstrators - June 2026, date of Peru's general election first round; Fujimori (Fuerza Popular) led ## Why it matters The Boluarte removal is significant because it demonstrates that Peru's constitutional system has evolved, in practice, into a parliamentary-style mechanism where Congress can remove any executive it cannot cohabit with. This has made Peru ungovernable in the conventional presidential sense: no executive can credibly threaten Congress with dissolution or popular mandate while Congress holds the moral incapacity clause as a permanent veto. For the Andean region, the Peruvian pattern is watched by Bolivia and Ecuador, where similar constitutional instability exists. For investors in Peru's mining sector, presidential instability creates policy uncertainty; Peru is the world's second-largest copper producer and the outcome of the June election will determine the regulatory environment for lithium and copper concessions. For the US, Peru is a key counternarcotics partner and its governance fragility complicates bilateral cooperation. ## What to watch - Whether the June 2026 presidential election first round produces a majority or triggers a runoff. - Whether Keiko Fujimori wins the second round and how a Fuerza Popular government changes Peru's mining and fiscal policy. - Whether the criminal cases against Boluarte linked to the 2022 crackdown proceed under the Balcázar caretaker government. - Whether Peru's Congress-executive cycle produces another removal within the next presidential term. ## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens) ### International news network; confirmed Balcázar's installation as Peru's new president on 19 February - **Al Jazeera** (Global, en) — Reported that Peru's Congress installed Cristina Balcázar as the country's new president on 19 February 2026, following the brief and contested interim presidency of José Jeri, who had himself been installed after Dina Boluarte's impeachment on 8 February. Described the succession as leaving Peru under its third head of government within two weeks. Balcázar, as president of Congress, became constitutionally eligible after questions arose over Jeri's circumstances. > "Peru appoints third leader in weeks as Congress installs Cristina Balcázar after José Jeri's removal." Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/19/peru-appoints-new-president-after-jose-jeris-removal ### US public broadcaster; provided context on Boluarte's removal and the constitutional mechanism - **NPR** (United States, en) — Explained that Peru's Congress voted to remove Dina Boluarte on grounds of 'moral incapacity', the constitutional mechanism used to impeach presidents in Peru, citing her handling of 2022-2023 protests, ongoing corruption investigations, and governance failures. The removal triggered a constitutional succession that first elevated José Jeri and then Cristina Balcázar within days. Noted that Peru had cycled through multiple presidents since 2016 under the same constitutional provision. > "Peru's Congress ousts Boluarte on moral incapacity grounds, triggering a rapid succession through two more presidents within weeks." Source: https://www.npr.org/2026/02/19/g-s1-110679/peru-new-president ### Policy analysis body focused on Latin America; analysed the constitutional mechanics and political implications of the Boluarte impeachment - **Americas Society / Council of the Americas** (United States, en) — Analysed Peru's use of the 'moral incapacity' clause to remove Boluarte, noting it had been used against multiple presidents since Vizcarra in 2020. Described the Boluarte government as having governed under permanent judicial and political pressure, with investigations into the December 2022 crackdown on protesters that killed dozens still unresolved. Placed the February 2026 removal in the context of a Congress that had maintained effective veto power over the executive since 2021. > "Peru's Congress impeaches Boluarte and installs Jeri as interim president; the 'moral incapacity' clause used again in Lima." Source: https://www.as-coa.org/articles/perus-congress-impeaches-dina-boluarte-installs-jose-jeri-interim-president ### US foreign policy think tank; assessed the structural instability of the Peruvian presidency and what it means for Andean democratic governance - **Council on Foreign Relations** (United States, en) — Argued that Boluarte's removal was a symptom of a structural crisis in Peru's political system, in which an independently elected Congress has used the moral incapacity clause as a tool of congressional dominance over the executive, without the crisis of executive legitimacy that the clause was designed to address. Noted that Peru had now had six presidents in ten years. Assessed the Fujimori-led Fuerza Popular as the likely dominant force in the June 2026 election. > "Boluarte impeachment reflects a deeper crisis in Peru's presidential system; Congress holds structural veto that no single executive can survive." Source: https://www.cfr.org/articles/president-boluarte-impeached-perus-crisis-runs-deeper ### unlabelled - **Wikipedia / Election data aggregators** (Global, en) — Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Peruvian_general_election - **Infobae Peru** (Latin America, es) — Source: https://www.infobae.com/peru/2026/06/ ## Across the graph - Entities: Peru --- Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/ko/n/peru-political-succession-2026