Maria Perez Tello

Marisol Pérez Tello (María Soledad Pérez Tello de Rodríguez) is a first-time candidate for president of Peru, representing the party Primero la Gente (People First). Tello is competing in a field of 35 candidates; she is one of four women seeking the office. The election will be conducted in a two-round format, with the first round scheduled for April 12, 2026. If no candidate achieves 50% of the vote, the top two candidates will advance to a runoff on June 7. 

Originally from the southern Peruvian city of Tacna and now based in Lima, Tello holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in law from, respectively, Universidad de San Martín de Porres and Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. A practicing notary since 1999, Tello taught at the law faculty of Universidad de San Martín de Porres for more than two decades, from 1996 to 2020. She was elected to Congress in 2011, remaining in the legislature until 2016. From 2016 to 2017, during the administration of President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, she served as Minister of Justice and Human Rights.

Tello’s campaign is centered on public security and education. In accordance with her party’s platform, she seeks to “nullify laws that weaken criminal prosecution and favor criminal organizations, with the aim of restoring the State’s ability to effectively investigate and punish crime.” She also promotes a “commitment to quality education, accessible at all levels: basic, technical higher education, and university.”