Many candidates are being accused of being financed by the drug trade. On August 12, Interior Minister Daniel Urresti handed the JNE a list of 124 candidates with supposed links to the drug trade. The list includes those being investigated, found guilty, or who face on-going judicial proceedings. The candidate for the town of Barranca, to the north of Lima, who belongs to Keiko Fujimori’s party, was recently linked to the discovery of a van with more than 400 kilograms of cocaine. The APRA candidate for Vilcashuamán was found guilty of drug trafficking although he still retains the support of his party.

Perhaps the most notorious case, however, relates to Castañeda Lossio. He has been the subject of investigations for his dealings with the company Comunicore and allegations of graft. Castañeda has so far managed to keep himself out of the judicial proceedings surrounding Comunicore. However a recent article in the Revista Poder links this company with the laundering of assets from drug trafficking (see https://revistapoder.lamula.pe).

This fresh allegation appears to be denting his support in the polls somewhat. Still, he remains the favourite to win the mayoralty of Lima by a large margin. The most recent polls give him 43% support, as against 14% for his closest contender, the incumbent Susana Villarán, and 10% for Salvador Heresi.