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Sworn in July 28
Keiko Fujimori was sworn in as president of Peru on July 28, the day the country commemorates its independence, taking office for a five-year term as Peru’s tenth president since 2016.
“will be sworn in as president of the Republic on July 28”
At 51, Fujimori received the presidential sash amid applause after taking the oath of office and vowed to lead a “safe, prosperous, and united” country.
Her inauguration brought to a close the cycle led by interim President José María Balcázar, whose term was disputed in the run-up to the ceremony, with Fernando Rospigliosi urging Balcázar to hand over the presidential sash one day before the official ceremony.
In Lima, the day began with the traditional Te Deum at the Cathedral Basilica of Lima, where Cardinal Carlos Castillo, Archbishop of Lima, denounced politicians who “use religion for partisan gain and to win votes,” while also wishing that “the Church would not question” reality.
At noon in the Congress of the Republic, Fujimori was sworn in and delivered her address to the nation, and the sources say her cabinet was also set to be sworn in on Tuesday with Luis Galarreta, Elmer Cuba, and Carlos Espá among the first confirmed names.
Cabinet lineup and plans
The swearing-in of Luis Galarreta as President of the Council of Ministers (PCM) anchored Fujimori’s first ministerial cabinet, with the El Comercio Perú profile describing Galarreta as part of the president’s closest and most loyal circle and also the first vice president of the Republic and secretary-general of Fuerza Popular.
El Comercio Perú also says economist Marco Antonio Vinelli took the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation, and businessman Luis Dyer Fernández was appointed Minister of Health, while the same cabinet list includes Vladimiro Huaroc as Minister of the Environment and Mauricio Arnillas Gonzales as Minister of Housing.
In the first ordinary session of the new ministerial cabinet, RPP says the Executive evaluated initiatives focused on citizen security, the economy, employment, and the modernization of the State, and that one main item was reviewing a Supreme Decree to request legislative powers from the Congress of the Republic.
RPP adds that the objective of the request is to provide the Government with immediate legal tools that allow speeding up and making the State's response more effective, especially in the face of crime rates.
The RPP account also says the cabinet discussed “reinforced continuation of the emergency intervention in the National Penitentiary System,” aiming to establish operational reforms to regain institutional control and restore authority within prisons nationwide.
Diplomatic pivot and stakes
Beyond domestic appointments, El País reports that Fujimori’s selection of Carlos Espá as Minister of Foreign Affairs offered an early clue about a diplomatic pivot toward Washington, noting Espá’s prior role as Communications Director in the press and cultural affairs area at the U.S. Embassy in Lima between 2008 and 2023.
“defined the United States as an 'ally'”
El País also says Fujimori defined the United States as an “ally” and expressed her intention for Peru to join the Americas Shield, an initiative promoted by Donald Trump to combat transnational organized crime.
The same El País account describes a separate foreign-policy friction point with Mexico, saying the rupture occurred when the government of Claudia Sheinbaum granted diplomatic asylum to Betssy Chávez, while the Peruvian state refused to grant her safe conduct to leave the country.
In Peru’s legislature, El País reports that Miguel Torres was elected president of the Senate for the 2026-2027 term, with the vote decided by a narrow margin of 30 votes to 29 for the opposition's candidate.
With the cabinet installed and the legislative powers request under review, the sources portray the immediate stakes as whether the government can translate its program into action through Congress while addressing security and prison issues discussed in the first session of the Council of Ministers.
