Peru Leader Rules Out Congress Shutdown Before Impeachment Vote

Matthew Bristow
·1 min read
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(Bloomberg) -- Peru’s President Pedro Castillo ruled out a shutdown of the opposition-led congress ahead of Wednesday’s impeachment vote against him.

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“I reaffirm my commitment to democracy, the law and the constitution, and I emphatically reject the idea that my government is planning a closure of congress to avoid an impeachment,” Castillo said Saturday in a post on Twitter.

The nation is in the grip of another political crisis after Castillo’s fourth prime minister, Anibal Torres, quit last month when congress rejected a vote of confidence he presented, while the defense minister resigned Dec. 3, citing personal reasons. Opposition lawmakers are seeking to oust Castillo for alleged “permanent moral incapacity” in this week’s vote.

Read more: Peru Congress Approves Impeachment Attempt Against Castillo

Castillo, who took office in July 2021, has already survived two impeachment attempts.

At least 87 of the 130 lawmakers would need to vote to eject Castillo from the presidency, in which case Vice President Dina Boluarte would take over as head of state. A poll last month shows that Castillo currently has 26% support among the general public.

Peru’s constitution allows the president to dissolve the unicameral parliament and call new elections if two of his cabinet chiefs lose votes of confidence. This happened most recently in 2019, when then-President Martin Vizcarra shut down congress.

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