Overview
- The JNE plenary formalized Resolution N.° 4557‑2026‑JNE in a 3–2 vote and held on Tuesday that incumbents elected in 2022 cannot reassume the mayoralty by winning as first regidor and then succeeding to the post.
- The court grounded its reading in Article 194 of the Constitution and Article 24 of the Law Orgánica de Municipalidades, arguing that using the first‑regidor slot to return to office would subvert the re‑election ban.
- The resolution covers 153 cases where sitting mayors ran as first regidores in October 2026 and could change official proclamations and succession lines in key districts such as Lima and San Juan de Lurigancho.
- Political leaders and affected mayors have pushed back: Rafael López Aliaga announced a criminal complaint against JNE President Roberto Burneo and Jesús Maldonado said he will pursue legal action to overturn the criterion.
- The decision follows past practices in 2018 and 2022 but raises procedural questions about timing and predictability because the plenary issued the criterion during the proclamation phase, a move critics call arbitrary and likely to prompt further court challenges.