candidates should return to universities to discuss their platforms
En el umbral de una segunda vuelta que definirá el rumbo de Perú, el partido Juntos por el Perú propone que el debate presidencial entre Roberto Sánchez y Keiko Fujimori se celebre en la Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, uno de los recintos académicos más emblemáticos del país. La elección del lugar no es casual: en un momento en que estudiantes marchan por la educación pública gratuita y de calidad, llevar la disputa política al corazón de la universidad pública es un gesto que habla sobre qué espacios merecen albergar el poder. El resultado del 7 de junio aún es incierto, pero la batalla por los símbolos ya ha comenzado.
- Sánchez llega a la segunda vuelta con una desventaja real: Fujimori lo supera por más de cinco puntos porcentuales tras la primera ronda, lo que convierte cada decisión de campaña en una apuesta de alto riesgo.
- La propuesta del debate en la UNMSM fue anunciada por el secretario general del partido sin que el propio candidato la haya confirmado públicamente, creando una inusual brecha entre el vocero y el protagonista.
- El sombrero andino que porta Sánchez desata controversia: sus adversarios lo leen como disfraz electoral, mientras su partido lo defiende como reconocimiento explícito a las bases rurales e indígenas que heredaron del movimiento Castillo.
- El Jurado Nacional de Elecciones tiene la última palabra sobre el formato, la sede y las condiciones del debate, lo que convierte la propuesta de la UNMSM en una apertura táctica más que en un acuerdo consumado.
- Juntos por el Perú reivindica ser la fuerza política dominante en Cajamarca, una región serrana que podría ser decisiva si la contienda se estrecha en las semanas que restan hasta el 7 de junio.
La segunda vuelta presidencial peruana entre Roberto Sánchez y Keiko Fujimori aún no tiene debate oficial, pero el partido de Sánchez ya está moviendo piezas. Ernesto Zunini, secretario general de Juntos por el Perú, reveló en declaraciones públicas que su candidato ha propuesto debatir en la Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos. Sánchez no lo ha confirmado personalmente, pero Zunini habló como si la decisión estuviera tomada.
La elección de la UNMSM no es solo logística. Zunini la vinculó directamente con las protestas estudiantiles en curso por una educación pública gratuita y de calidad, argumentando que los candidatos deberían discutir sus propuestas precisamente en los espacios que esas luchas defienden. Es una forma de decir que esta campaña pertenece a las instituciones públicas, no solo a los estudios de televisión.
Los números de la primera vuelta sitúan a Fujimori en ventaja: 17.18% frente al 12.03% de Sánchez. Aun así, Zunini atribuye el pase a la segunda vuelta al legado del movimiento Castillo, cuyas bases rurales y serranas fueron, según él, determinantes. Ese legado se hace visible en el sombrero andino que porta Sánchez, asociado al expresidente Pedro Castillo, encarcelado desde 2022 tras un intento de golpe. Cuando se cuestionó si el sombrero era un disfraz, Zunini lo rechazó con firmeza: es reconocimiento político, no teatro.
El partido también reivindica ser la fuerza principal en Cajamarca, región de arraigo para Sánchez, lo que podría ser clave en una carrera que promete ajustarse. Por ahora, la propuesta del debate espera la decisión del Jurado Nacional de Elecciones. Lo que está claro es que Juntos por el Perú quiere anclar su campaña en lo público, lo serrano y lo simbólico.
Peru's presidential runoff is taking shape around a debate that hasn't been officially announced yet. Ernesto Zunini, the general secretary of Juntos por el Perú, revealed on air that his party's candidate, Roberto Sánchez, has proposed holding a televised debate against Keiko Fujimori at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos—one of the country's most prestigious public universities. The proposal remains unofficial; Sánchez himself has not made it public, but Zunini spoke about it as though the decision were already made.
The choice of venue carries symbolic weight. Zunini framed it as more than logistics: he pointed to student activists currently protesting for a free, quality public university system, and suggested that having presidential candidates return to university grounds to discuss their platforms would be meaningful at this particular moment. It's a way of saying that the campaign belongs in spaces of learning and debate, not just in media studios or campaign rallies. The party is signaling that they welcome whatever rules the National Electoral Jury ultimately sets, but they're also staking out territory—suggesting that a public university is the right place for this conversation.
The timing matters. Sánchez and Fujimori are headed to a June 7 runoff after the first round of voting. With all ballots counted, Fujimori's Fuerza Popular took 2.88 million votes, or 17.18 percent of valid ballots cast. Sánchez's Juntos por el Perú received 2.02 million votes, representing 12.03 percent. He trails by a significant margin, but he made it through to the second round—a result that Zunini credits partly to the legacy of the Castillo movement, the political force that dominated Peru's highlands and rural regions in recent years.
That legacy is visible in Sánchez himself. He wears a distinctive hat, the kind associated with Andean peasant movements and with former president Pedro Castillo, who was imprisoned after attempting a coup in 2022. When asked whether the hat is a costume or disguise, Zunini pushed back firmly. It's not theater, he said; it's political reclamation. The hat represents continuity with Castillo's base and acknowledgment of the rural and indigenous constituencies that powered Sánchez into the runoff. Zunini framed it as a debt: Juntos por el Perú recognizes that the Castillo movement's supporters were decisive in getting them to this stage.
Zunini also claimed that Juntos por el Perú has become the dominant political force in Cajamarca, the highland region where Sánchez has deep roots. This assertion matters because it suggests the party has consolidated support in a region that could be crucial in a close race. Whether that claim holds up will become clear as the campaign intensifies toward June 7.
For now, the debate proposal sits in a kind of limbo. The National Electoral Jury will ultimately decide where, when, and under what conditions the candidates will face off. Both camps say they're ready. Zunini promised that Sánchez would emerge victorious from whatever debate format is chosen. But the real negotiation—over venue, moderators, format, and audience—hasn't begun in earnest. The UNMSM proposal is a opening move, a way of framing what kind of campaign Juntos por el Perú wants to run: one rooted in public institutions, connected to social movements, and grounded in the highlands.
Citações Notáveis
It would be important for presidential candidates to return to these centers of knowledge to present their proposals to the country— Ernesto Zunini, general secretary of Juntos por el Perú
The hat is not a disguise but a political reclamation, recognizing the Castillo movement's decisive role in our runoff qualification— Ernesto Zunini
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does it matter where this debate happens? Isn't the substance of what they say more important than the location?
The location is part of the substance. A university campus signals something different than a television studio—it says the candidates are accountable to students and intellectuals, not just to media gatekeepers. And right now, students are actively protesting for public education. Holding a debate there connects the campaign to that struggle.
But Sánchez is trailing by five percentage points. Does proposing a debate venue actually help him close that gap?
Not directly. But it's a way of controlling the narrative around what kind of candidate he is. By insisting on a public university, he's saying he represents the public interest, not private power. It's positioning, but positioning matters in a close race.
What about the hat? Why did Zunini need to defend it?
Because critics will say it's performative—that Sánchez is wearing a costume to appeal to rural voters. Zunini is saying no, it's a genuine political statement honoring the Castillo movement that got them here. It's a way of saying: we're not pretending to be something we're not; we're continuing a real political tradition.
Is Juntos por el Perú actually the strongest force in Cajamarca, or is that just campaign talk?
That's the question. Zunini asserted it, but assertions in politics are often aspirational. The real test will come in the voting. If they're truly dominant there, they should win the region decisively on June 7.
What happens if the electoral jury rejects the UNMSM proposal?
Then both camps will negotiate over alternatives. But Sánchez has already staked out the moral high ground by proposing a public venue. If the jury chooses somewhere else, he can say it wasn't his choice.