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Peru’s Kuczynski open to house arrest for Alberto Fujimori

Kuczynski received 50.12% of votes to 49.88% for rival Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former long-time President Alberto Fujimori, the electoral commission said.

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Electoral officials announced on Thursday that all votes were counted and that Kuczynski had won 50.1 percent of the votes.

Kuczynski promised to unify Peru after the divisive election that many saw as a referendum on the controversial legacy of Fujimori’s father, imprisoned former authoritarian leader Alberto Fujimori, in Peru’s fourth straight democratic election.

Keiko’s party, Fuerza Popular, has the majority of seats.

Her allies in Congress said earlier they wanted electoral authorities to annul bundles of ballots from various different voting stations because they had detected irregularities. However, with each bundle holding up to 300 votes, Fujimori would not be able catch up to Kuczynski even if all were in her favor. “Now it’s time to work together for the future of our country, ” he wrote.

Since the vote Fujimori has visited her campaign headquarters daily, and some supporters have claimed that she has been the victim of fraud and demanded a recount. But Kuczynski, a 77-year-old former World Bank economist and ex prime minister, caught up with her after Fujimori was stung by scandals involving her close advisers and after Kuczynski performed better in a final debate.

Fujimori has not yet conceded and has not delivered any statement regarding the results. The lawmakers however said they would accept the official results.

Analysts say Fujimori, 41, who was vying to become Peru’s first woman president and led for most of the race, was damaged by a late surge of “anti-fujimorismo”.

Economic growth slowed under outgoing leftist President Ollanta Humala, from 6.5 percent when he took office in 2011 to 3.3 percent a year ago. “There are many of us who feel the train has passed them by but we want them all to board the train”.

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Kuczynski has pledged to ease investment restrictions with an eye to bolstering Peru’s economy, which he sees as too dependent on ore exports to China, and has called for the development of new market sectors, including agriculture and tourism.

A neighbour gives a box of fruit as a present for Peruvian presidential candidate Pedro Pablo Kuczynski to an employee in Lima Peru