Enrique Valderrama
Enrique Valderrama | |
|---|---|
In 2024 at the APRA’s Miraflores branch | |
| Born | Pitter Enrique Valderrama Peña 14 April 1988 |
| Alma mater | Pontifical Catholic University University of San Martín de Porres (LLB) |
| Occupations |
|
| Political party | Peruvian Aprista Party |
| Spouse |
Jennifer Guerra (m. 2025) |
Pitter Enrique Valderrama Peña (born 14 April 1988) is a Peruvian politician and journalist. A member of the Peruvian Aprista Party (APRA), he is currently a member of the party's National Political Commission since July 2021 and the party’s presidential nominee for the upcoming 2026 presidential election.[1][2]
As a journalist, he collaborates as a columnist for Expreso.[3] He is also the founder of the political affairs portal Punto de Encuentro.[4]
Political career
Valderrama is a member of the Peruvian Aprista Party since 2010.[5] He was chosen to run for the Lima Metropolitan Council in the 2010 municipal election, but the party's list with Carlos Roca as mayoral nominee was ultimately withdrawn.[6]
From 2011 to 2012, Valderrama served as General Secretary of the Aprista University Command at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, where he studied law at the time.[7]
On 21 July 2021, Valderrama was appointed directly by party leader César Trelles as a member of the National Political Commission chaired by former congressman Mauricio Mulder. He is considered a strong contender for the leadership of the APRA within an influx of young leaders for the party's renewal.[8][9]
2026 presidential run
On 19 September 2025, at a partisan rally held in Comas, Lima, Valderrama announced his candidacy for the Peruvian Aprista Party presidential nomination for the 2026 general election.[10] The race was divided among 14 candidates, with former Prime Ministers Jorge del Castillo and Javier Velásquez, former minister Hernán Garrido Lecca, and Valderrama as the strongest contenders.[11]
At the primary election held on 30 November 2025, Valderrama narrowly secured the party’s presidential nomination, finishing first with 3,711 votes (25.98 percent), a margin of 184 votes over Velásquez, who received 3,527 votes (24.69 percent).[12][13] The outcome was broadly seen as a major upset from an external perspective, since the more seasoned candidates were widely expected to prevail based on their established political careers and internal coalitions.[14]
References
- ^ "Elecciones 2026: el APRA busca resurgir entre dudas, viejas caras y nuevos liderazgos; Diario La República". larepublica.pe. 31 March 2025. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
- ^ "ENRIQUE VALDERRAMA WILL BE THE APRA PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE IN THE 2026 ELECTIONS". Latin American News (in Spanish). 1 December 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
Con el 100 % de los votos escrutados, la lista 7 de Enrique Valderrama superó a la lista 13 de Javier Velásquez Quesquén. De este modo, el joven abogado representará al partido APRA en las elecciones de 2026 tras obtener 3711 votos, mientras que su rival Velásquez obtuvo 3527 votos.
- ^ "Archivos - Enrique Valderrama; Diario Expreso". expreso.com.pe. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "Punto de Encuentro". Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "POLÍTICOS - PITTER ENRIQUE VALDERRAMA PEÑA". Jurado Nacional de Elecciones. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ Redacción EC (15 June 2010). "El Apra eligió a Carlos Roca Cáceres como candidato a la Alcaldía de Lima| El Comercio Perú". El Comercio. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "Los Pulpines del APRA". Gato Encerrado. 11 January 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ Redacción Canal N (21 October 2022). "[VIDEO] Enrique Valderrama: Lo principal en este momento es construir la unidad del APRA". Canal N. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ Alfonso Baella (17 April 2024). "[VIDEO] #BaellaTalks. Invitados: Víctor Andrés Marroquín-Merino y Enrique Ghersi". Canal B. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
- ^ "Enrique Valderrama officially announced his candidacy for the APRA party in Comas". YouTube&Bethel Noticias (in European Spanish). 24 September 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ^ "APRA y sus 15 precandidatos con miras las Elecciones 2026: conoce las listas y cuándo se elegirá al representante". La República (in Spanish). 5 November 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ^ "¿Quién es Enrique Valderrama, el joven candidato presidencial del partido aprista?". Perú21 (in Spanish). 5 November 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
Leaving behind the slates led by historical members of the party, such as Javier Velásquez Quesquén and his alliance with Carla García, daughter of Alan García, and Jorge del Castillo himself alongside Mauricio Mulder, this young 36-year-old candidate would represent the renewal of this political movement.
- ^ "¿Quién es Enrique Valderrama, el joven candidato presidencial del partido aprista?". El Comercio (in Spanish). 1 December 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
Enrique Valderrama—member of the APRA Political Commission, law graduate, and columnist—has just been elected as the presidential nominee for the Aprista Party, in what must be the most hotly contested primaries at the Casa del Pueblo in recent years. In an interview with El Comercio, he said that the party must reaffirm "its democratic leftist perspective."
- ^ "Enrique Valderrama: ¿Cómo queda el Partido Aprista tras su elección? ¿Quiénes rodean al candidato presidencial?". El Comercio (in Spanish). 2 December 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
Enrique Valderrama's narrow victory in the internal elections of the Aprista Party and his nomination as presidential candidate has been a severe blow to a sector within the Casa del Pueblo, especially to former Prime Minister Javier Velásquez Quesquén and journalist Carla García. The "popular and provincial ticket" was left out of the 2026 general election by less than 200 votes.