Peruvian President Ultimately Impeached and 'Dishonorably Removed'... First Female President Elected (Summary)

[Asia Economy Reporters Hyunwoo Lee and Hyunjin Jung] Pedro Castillo (53), President of Peru, was impeached by the Congress and forced to resign in disgrace after just over 16 months in office. Immediately after stepping down and becoming a suspect, he was promptly arrested by the police, and the presidency was succeeded by current Vice President Dina Boluarte. Boluarte became the first female president in Peru's history.

On the 7th (local time), Dina Boluarte, the first female president of Peru, was inaugurated as vice president.
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

According to AFP and Bloomberg on the 7th (local time), the Peruvian Congress held a plenary session that day and passed the impeachment motion with 101 votes in favor, 6 against, and 10 abstentions. The impeachment motion requires the support of more than two-thirds of the total members (130 members), meaning at least 87 votes to pass. Considering that the ruling party holds 50 seats and the opposition 80 seats in the Peruvian Congress, a significant number of ruling party members also supported the impeachment.

As a result, President Castillo was forced to resign in disgrace after just over 16 months in office and was immediately turned into a suspect on charges including bribery and arrested by the police.

Emphasizing his background as the son of poor farmers, Castillo was highly regarded as the first president in Peru from a farming background rather than the political and economic elite. However, his approval ratings plummeted due to failures in responding to the economic crisis and involvement in corruption, raising impeachment concerns from early in his term. Within less than three weeks of the government’s formation, a ministerial resignation crisis occurred, and within six months, three prime ministers were ousted and ministers were repeatedly replaced, causing increasing political instability.

Subsequently, within less than eight months of his inauguration, he faced two impeachment crises. Previously, in October last year, the Peruvian opposition submitted an impeachment motion with the signatures of 28 lawmakers and attempted to pass the motion two months later, but it was rejected with 46 votes in favor, 76 against, and 4 abstentions. In March this year, another impeachment motion was proposed with 76 votes in favor and 41 against. However, after debate, it was again rejected with 55 votes in favor, 54 against, and 19 abstentions.

Pedro Castillo, President of Peru, impeached on the 7th (local time)
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

President Castillo himself was plagued by various corruption allegations and became the subject of a prosecutorial investigation. Among these was a preliminary investigation by prosecutors into allegations that he was involved in favoring certain companies in national projects, as well as accusations including plagiarism of his thesis, totaling six possible criminal charges.

The Peruvian prosecutors conducted raids on the presidential palace and his private residence, detained and investigated his sister-in-law Jennifer Paredes, and extended the investigation to First Lady Lilia Paredes. Ultimately, public perception shifted from viewing him as a "clean leftist" to a "corruption suspect," and his approval rating recently fell to the 10% range, leaving him isolated.

In response, President Castillo resisted by threatening to dissolve the Congress that was pushing for his impeachment, but this backfired as accusations of suppressing the legislature arose, causing even the vice president and cabinet members to turn against him, leading to the collapse of his administration.

Following this incident, Vice President Dina Boluarte, who succeeded to the presidency and became the first female president in Peru's history, will lead the government until the end of Castillo’s remaining term in July 2026. After taking the presidential oath, she stated, "I call for a political truce to overcome the crisis our country faces," and added, "A new cabinet will be formed that can unite public sentiment beyond party lines."

Amid the severe turmoil caused by the presidential impeachment, the value of Peru’s currency, the Sol, fell nearly 2% against the US dollar.