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Peruvian presidential candidate Pedro Pablo Kuczynski gestures to followers in Lima, Peru, June 5, 2016./Reuters
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Former Wall Street executive Pedro Pablo Kuczynski’s lead over Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of an imprisoned former authoritarian leader, tightened to just 0.36 percentage points late on Monday.
With a total of 95 percent of votes processed in Peru’s closest presidential election in at least 50 years, Kuczynski led Fujimori by fewer than 60,000 votes.
Votes from Peruvians living abroad were largely still to be tallied and could make changes to the outcome. One review of sample ballots suggested they were more likely to favor Kuczynski.
Fujimori had long been preferred to win Sunday’s election by a clear margin but Kuczynski caught up with her in final polls as Peruvians weighed the legacy of her father Alberto Fujimori, who was convicted of corruption and human rights abuse.
Noting that both candidates have promised policies that would be greatly favorable to investors in the mineral-rich Andean nation.
Representing nearly 4 percent of the possible electorate, foreign-based voters mostly live in the United States where Kuczynski, a former investment banker, stumped for votes in April. The latest results showed 5 percent of votes abroad had been counted, compared with 98 percent in Peru.
On the other hand, Fujimori, 41, has not spoken in public since late Sunday night, when she asked patience from her supporters.
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