For Alan Garcia Perez, 35, presidential candidate of the Popular American Revolutionary Alliance, victory seemed just out of reach. The youthful, center-left candidate gained an unofficial 48% of the votes cast in Peru's April 14 election, a better than 2-to-1 lead over Lima's Marxist mayor, Alfonso Barrantes Lingan. But Garcia needed an outright majority to win, and the two rivals faced the prospect of a runoff election.
Last week, in a surprise move, Barrantes retired from the race, possibly fearing an overwhelming defeat for the far left in a second round of balloting. His action opens the way for Garcia to...
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