The mayor of Lima, Rafael Lopez Aliagaavoided confirming this Monday whether he will finally resign from office Lima metropolitan area (MML) to formalize his candidacy for president in the 2026 general elections.
The mayor was contacted by the press while monitoring the progress of works on the new Las Torres bypass, located at the intersection of the Ramiro Prialé highway and Avenida Las Torres, in the Lurigancho-Chosica district.
“It is my private life and I will see what I do with my life. As mayor I inspect the work. (…) You ask so much that it seems insulting. I have already answered well that I will continue to work as mayor. I will see what I do with my life. It is my life, not yours,” he explained.
A journalist mentioned the election plan and the pending determinations in his administration, to which the mayor replied that “a lot of work” is planned for this year and next. “The investment shock is at least 5 billion soles, it is money that we recovered from corruption (…),” he added.
Regarding the uncertainty that a possible resignation brings, he reiterated that it is a personal decision that he will judge alone: ”It depends on my life, because my life is not at stake. I have to clearly define what I will do in the next years of my life. I reserve such a personal matter for my life,” he concluded.
The Municipal company supporting strategic projects (Emape) is carrying out the works, which include access ramps, retaining walls, curbs, traffic signs, signal guards and road reflectors to improve the safety of drivers and passengers.
The Las Torres bypass is part of the MML plan to improve connectivity in eastern Lima and expand 4 kilometers Ramiro-Pialé highway. According to the municipality, these measures will reduce travel times between Lima and Chosica, facilitate access to Huachipa and relieve congestion on the main road.
At the same press conference Lopez Aliaga spoke about the results of the latest survey Ipsos Peruwhere she is in first place in voting intention with 10%, surpassing the leader of Fuerza Popular, Keiko Fujimori (8%) and comedian Carlos Álvarez (6%).
The mayor, who announced he would withdraw on Oct. 12 to declare his candidacy, downplayed his position in the poll and questioned the pollster’s reliability. “I haven’t heard anything about it, I’m busy with other things, but I don’t believe anything from Ipsos,” he explained.
He then recalled the 2021 elections, in which he came third with 11.75% of the vote, behind Pedro Castillo (18.92%) and Fujimori (13.40%), who advanced to the second round. Despite his strong media presence and conservative discourse, he was unable to advance in this race.
“I don’t know if you remember that a few weeks before the elections they published a headline saying I was number 7 or 8 and that confused a lot of people,” he commented to the journalist who consulted him. Although his voting intention has increased by six points since January 2025, López Aliaga avoided giving meaning to the result. “I don’t believe in surveys, I work and that’s it“he continued.
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