Workers are sanitizing 11,402 polling stations nationwide, which will be open for 12 hours of voting. ERNESTO BENAVIDES/AFP
Polling stations opened Sunday in Peru, with some 25 million people set to cast their ballot for a new president amid the country’s deadliest week of the coronavirus pandemic and a surge in new infections.
Voting is mandatory in the country of 33 million, which saw an average of 279 daily deaths over the past week and 384 fatalities in 24 hours reported Saturday — the third daily death toll record this week.
Over 11,200 new cases were recorded Saturday.
Unlike its neighbor Chile, which was also due to hold elections Sunday but delayed them over the pandemic, Peru’s government decided to press ahead. The thousands of polling stations opened their doors at 7.00 am local time (1200 GMT), and will stay open for 12 hours — four more than usual.
More than 1.6 million people have tested positive for the coronavirus in Peru to date, and more than 54,000 have…
Source: Guardian Newspaper
