Peru Installs Jose Balcazar as Interim President After Jeri Ousted in Political Upheaval

Jose Balcazar stands after he was elected as interim president, following a session by Peruvian lawmakers to choose a new leader of Congress to assume Peru's presidency, after they ousted President Jose Jeri over a scandal involving undisclosed meetings with a Chinese businessman, in Lima, Peru, on Feb. 18, 2026. Angela Ponce/Reuters

Peruvian lawmakers elected Jose Balcazar as the country’s new interim ‌president on Wednesday ahead of general elections in April, making him the country’s eighth president in as many years.

Since 2018, Peru has cycled through a rapid ‌succession of presidents, exposing a deep rupture between the executive branch and ⁠Congress and a fragmented party system unable to form lasting governing coalitions.