Elections 2022: Lima Metropolitana and Mariscal Castilla
The 2022 elections were a rollercoaster when it came to vote counting to determine the next mayor of Lima Metropolitana. Rafael López Aliaga is the virtual mayor after displacing Daniel Urresti by a minimum percentage of votes, according to the ONPE count. In another part of Peru, a similar situation was experienced, although in this case there was an absolute tie which determined that the authority would be chosen through the flip of a coin.
Yes, you read that right. In the district of Mariscal Castilla, in the province of Concepción, Wilson Manolo Torres Villar, candidate of Perú Libre, and Lizándro Lizárraga Maravía, from Junín Sostenible, were tied after obtaining the same number of votes after counting 100% of the ONPE ballots.
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Each candidate received 332 votes from the citizens in the latest elections held on Sunday, October 2nd.
Taking this into consideration, you should know that the Municipal Elections Law does not specify which method should be used in these cases. Within the document, the following statement can be found: "In case of a tie, it is resolved by lottery among those who have obtained the same vote." Thus, one way to choose the mayor is to flip a coin.
Is there a precedent? Yes, it was in 2018. The same situation occurred in the town of Tibillo, located in the province of Ica, when Wilber Estrada Pardo (Acción Popular) and Jairo Estrada Ramírez (Obras por la Modernidad) were tied in the elections.
At that time, both candidates met at the headquarters of the Special Electoral Jury of Ica, in the presence of authorities from the Office of the Ombudsman, Reniec, and a police officer, and the coin toss took place.
Wilber Estrada ended up winning in this game of chance. This set a precedent in the Municipal and Regional Elections of Peru.