Peru police raid ex-election chief’s home as ballot shortages spark a widening probe

LIMA, Peru (AP) - Police in Peru raided the homes Friday of the now-resigned elections chief and five other officials in an investigation into a ballot shortage and other irregularities in the first round of the presidential election on April 12.

Agents and prosecutors also raided the home of the legal representative of Galaga, a private company responsible for transporting election ballots to voting centers, anti-corruption police said on social media. Agents gathered mobile phones, documents and other evidence in the raids, police said.

Piero Corvetto resigned as the elections agency chief on Tuesday to take responsibility for the election shortcomings, and said in a letter to authorities that he was stepping down to "generate more confidence" in the runoff vote on June 7.

But Corvetto denied any wrongdoing.

Corvetto's lawyer, Ricardo Sánchez, told a local radio station that Judge Manuel Chuyo had ordered the raid but rejected a prosecutorial request to take his client into custody.

The April 12 election had to be extended for an additional day after the agency failed to deliver voting materials to more than a dozen centers in Lima, a problem that prevented more than 52,000 people from casting their ballots on time.

The incident sparked criticism, most notably from the ultraconservative candidate Rafael López Aliaga who claimed, without providing evidence, that an "electoral fraud unique in the world" occurred in Peru, while labeling Corvetto a "criminal" and vowing to pursue him "until he dies."

An electoral mission from the European Union urged political actors to refrain from violent rhetoric and has ruled out any indications of fraud.

With 95.1% of the ballots tallied, Keiko Fujimori, the conservative daughter of disgraced former President Alberto Fujimori, was leading the vote count on Friday with 17.05%, followed by nationalist Roberto Sánchez with 12.03%, and López Aliaga with 11.90%.

The Electoral Tribunal on Friday rejected demands for supplementary elections at polling stations affected by the logistical failures, labeling the move "unfeasible." Though the request was spearheaded by López Aliaga and backed by Fujimori as "reasonable," the tribunal urged all parties to act "responsibly," reminding them that the electoral process has not concluded.

Peru's electoral tribunal has announced a May 15 deadline to officially declare which two candidates will advance to the presidential runoff.

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