GOVERNING PARTY CANDIDATE ELECTED AS PRESIDENT OF

UNCLAS LIMA 003261 SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PINR PE SUBJECT: GOVERNING PARTY CANDIDATE ELECTED AS PRESIDENT OF CONGRESS Sensitive But Unclassified, Please Handle Accordingly ¶1. (U) On July 26, 2005, the Peruvian Congress elected Marcial Ayaipoma, the candidate of President Alejandro Toledo,s ruling Peru Posible (PP) Party, as its new President, succeeding Antero Flores Araoz. Although Ayaipoma ran unchallenged, his election proved difficult. The opposition APRA and Unidad Nacional (UN) parties, who both supported Flores Araoz last year, chose not to propose a candidate to replace him. Members from these parties threatened Ayaipoma,s election by abstaining in their votes. Ayaipoma needed a majority of the 108 votes cast, and in the end, he and the PP/FIM governing coalition scraped together the support needed with a vote of 59 in favor, 44 abstentions and 5 annulled ballots. ¶2. (U) Ayaipoma,s first address to Congress as President reiterated themes he raised in public statements prior to his election. He called for fiscal responsibility, for support of the Congressional committees investigating corruption, and for the elaboration of a 20-point multi-partisan agenda. ¶3. (SBU) COMMENT: Although this year,s election was not contested, it was still challenging for the President,s coalition. There has been speculation that APRA and UN declined to present a candidate in exchange for future political considerations. The opposition parties may also be positioning themselves for the upcoming April elections by turning the responsibility for the Congressional agenda (and for its performance) back over to the government. Nonetheless, Ayaipoma,s election is being seen as a success for Toledo. END COMMENT. ¶4. (U) BIO NOTE: Ayaipoma describes himself as a member of PP,s "hard wing" and has made a name for himself as a party loyalist. He defended Toledo against charges in the PP falsification of signatures scandal and has proposed legislation that would punish party defectors, a problem for PP. A surgeon and former professor, Ayaipoma,s other legislative priorities focus on health and education. He has stated publicly that Peru Posible needs to clean house in order to reconsolidate and strengthen its political position. STRUBLE