Former President Elected in Peru

Former President Alan Garcia returned to the presidency here after a runoff election that was painted as a rebuke of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

An official count of more than 77% of the ballots gave Garcia 55.4% of the vote, compared with 44.5% for his opponent, ex-army officer Ollanta Humala, authorities said late Sunday. The head of Peru’s electoral agency called the lead insurmountable.

Venezuela’s Chavez, South America’s chief critic of the U.S., had openly backed Humala and called Garcia a “liar” and “thief,” vowing to break diplomatic relations with Peru if Garcia was elected.

In a victory speech to euphoric supporters, Garcia said Chavez’s “imperialistic” ambitions had been shattered in Peru.

Humala conceded defeat late Sunday. “We recognize the [official] results ... and we salute the forces that competed against us, those of Mr. Garcia,” he said at a news conference.

Humala’s defeat was a relief for U.S. officials, who worried that Chavez would gain another supporter on the continent, after the election in neighboring Bolivia of Evo Morales, a close ally of the Venezuelan leader.

Garcia, 57, whose 1985-90 presidential term left the country on the verge of economic and political collapse, vowed not to repeat his mistakes from two decades ago.

The often-nasty campaign highlighted deep divisions in Peruvian society: Garcia benefited from the fears generated as Humala played to the frustrations of Peru’s struggling masses.

Garcia -- whose campaign motto was “responsible change” -- rode to the front amid overwhelming support from middle- and upper-class voters worried that Humala was an autocrat whose nationalist pronouncements would scare off foreign investors. Many acknowledged their distaste at having to vote for a candidate, Garcia, whom they considered inept and even unstable.

“I never in my life thought I would vote for Alan Garcia,” said Victor Barreda, 73, a businessman in Lima, the capital, where Humala is especially unpopular. “But, considering the options, we were left with no choice.”

Humala, 43, a retired lieutenant colonel who has never held elected office, had support among the poor and working-class who have seen little improvement in their lives even as the economy has grown briskly in recent years. His mixed-race heritage appealed to many voters with Indian blood in a nation where a powerful elite of mostly European ancestry has long dominated.

“We need someone new who will shake things up and do away with corruption,” said Amparo Garcia, 45, a single mother of two who voted for Humala. “Peru has had enough of mediocrity and thievery.”

Sunday’s voting culminated a bruising runoff campaign that featured name-calling, brawls, egg-tossing and at least one shootout. No serious incidents were reported on Sunday, although police in the southern city of Arequipa fired tear gas to disperse Humala supporters angered by early poll predictions.

Humala and Garcia finished first and second, respectively, among 20 candidates in the first round of elections April 9, but Humala failed to get the 50% of votes needed to avoid a runoff.

A return to the presidency for Garcia marks a remarkable comeback for a lifelong politician who was likened to John F. Kennedy when he was first elected to the presidency, at 35, in 1985. By the end of his five-year term, Garcia was a reviled figure in a nation mired in guerrilla war, hyperinflation, and shortages of staples such as bread, sugar and cooking oil. Disgust with Garcia and Peru’s traditional politicians opened the way for the surprise victory in 1990 of Alberto Fujimori, who ruled in autocratic fashion for 10 years and was ousted in 2000 in a corruption scandal.

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Special correspondent Adrian Leon in Lima contributed to this report.